My Fair Lady
by Rhamana
Summary: Yay for Yuu-randa! Plenty of mushy stuffs, with some cutesy things thrown in for good measure, with possibly a sprinkling of angst in later chapters!
1. Chapter 1

My Fair Lady

Miranda x Kanda

By Rhamana

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In which Miranda thinks a lot

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It was an unusual mission, Miranda thought as she walked along the dusty road, suitcase in her left hand. Not unusual in subject matter, she was on the trail of an Innocence fragment, much as always, but in the matter of companions. The familiar shock of silver hair, the one green eye and the slender Chinese girl were nowhere in sight, which discomforted her slightly, she felt stronger and less likely to mess up when Allen, Lavi and Lenalee were around. Walking along next to her, with surprisingly graceful strides was... Kanda. She didn't like Kanda very much, he was a terrifying prospect of an exorcist, forever glowering at her if she tried to snatch a sideways glance at her companion, and of course, as it was Kanda, talking was _very_ much out of the question.

She sighed gently, imagining her presence to be of little more concern to him than that of the Finders scouting ahead in their destination village.

It made her want to weep, that she was so unimportant as a fellow exorcist, and tremble, that she felt immense excitement just from being close to this VERY good looking Japanese man. The German men she knew were never as attractive as Yuu Kanda, tall and slender like a willow. Dare she say it,

he was BEAUTIFUL. She didn't dare voice her opinion to anyone though, if it reached back to Kanda, well, she'd seen how he reacted to Lavi's teasing, and fretted that she mattered so little that he would not think twice about attacking her in the same fashion.

Looking up ahead of her, she exclaimed softly as stretched out in front of them were miles and miles of beautiful flowers.

'Che' was Kanda's only response to this. She smirked inwardly wishing she had a Kanda-translator, so she could realise what each tone of that one syllable meant.

Her pace quickened as she breathed in the scent of the beautiful flowers, her face filling with a lovely rosy tint. Her complexion was quite dull, she thought woefully, all pale and pallid, she found herself wishing she had more colour in her face like Lenalee, and resolved to ask her for some tips on good ways to get some colour in her cheeks..

Kanda shot Miranda a sideways glance. He didn't think much of her but at least she was quiet. More than could be said for that damned Moyashi and baka Usagi. He smirked as he thought of Moyashi, he hadn't called him that for a long while. Though to be fair, that was probably because he hadn't seen him for a good two or three months, their missions always seemed to start when the other's had just ended, so they just missed each other at HQ every time. Not that he cared. He preferred the peace and being able to meditate and train more efficiently. Now if only he could get rid of the baka usagi in the same way…

Miranda noticed him smirk slightly from the corner of her eye, and felt a note of surprise at this most unusual gesture from Kanda. For him to smile was, well, unheard of. At least, she'd never seen him smile, but she was also surprised, it took years off her younger companion. She wondered how lovely he would look with a full blown smile on his face..

BANG.

Kanda, who had overtaken Miranda, without entirely meaning to, turned around. Miranda had, of course, tripped on a stray tree root that had up grown into the path they were walking. Her case had flew open and the few bits of papers and clothes had fluttered out, to lay on the path, the papers catching on the flowers' stems as the gentle breeze caught them.

'Che' he said again, turning fully round and bending over to help pick her up.

'I'm so terribly sorry Kanda-Kun!' she wailed in her overanxious tone. She'd messed up again, and what was worse, she'd done it because she'd been daydreaming about _him_. Actually, scratch that. What was worst was her undergarments were currently in his long slender hand as he helped repack her suitcase. Any blush that had crept onto her cheeks had now all but taken over her entire face as she grabbed wildly at the clothing in his hands. He looked surprised, as he hadn't registered what these things were, but figured it out for himself.

To cover up the fact he was blushing, he busied himself catching the papers that were now threatening to be permanently blown away if they weren't attended to soon. As he gathered the last page and turned back towards Miranda and her suitcase, he saw she was still kneeling on the floor, bent over her case fitting her clothes in, and looking for something else..

'Nein, wo es ist?!' She exclaimed in her native tongue. Kanda blinked in surprise, not knowing German himself. 'What did you say?' He asked her, trying not to sound annoyed. Miranda looked up, tears forming in her eyes. 'The key to my grandfather clock.. I bring it to every mission for good luck and its fell from my case!' she sobbed gently, before crawling in the dust trying to find her precious key.

Kanda sighed, and much to the shock of Miranda, he knelt down to help her find the key. After a few minutes of searching, he spotted it laying in the middle of a bed of vermillion red flowers, ones he had seen before but did not know, nor care to know, the name of.

'Oh thank you so much, Kanda-kun!' Miranda beamed gratefully, smiling up at the tall young man. Kanda studied her face carefully. She looked a lot more radiant when she smiled instead of going around with that constantly worried expression on her face, small wisps of her thick black hair escaping from the loose bun she'd tied it up in for travelling.

Shaking himself from his reverie he concealed his apparent interest in her and coughed, saying that should continue to walk or it would be midnight before they got there.

Miranda quickly scrambled to her feet, agreeing quickly while grabbing at her case, almost tripping over her booted feet. Kanda caught her deftly, and she lay in his arms, suitcase up to her chest, looking quite embarrassed and frightened.

'We'd probably get there faster if I carried you at this rate, but I expect you would protest at this' Kanda smirked, secretly amused at how little he was annoyed with all this. Several more loud apologies were wailed and he set her down on her feet.

In just half an hour they reached their destination Inn, only 20 minutes later than planned, the Finder, Toma seemed not to mind as he was aware of Miranda-sama's episodes of clumsiness.

As it was nearing 8 o clock Kanda resigned to the fact it was getting too dark to search tonight, so sighing heavily he checked them into their separate rooms next to each other and stomped off to his room, after announcing to Miranda he was going to take a shower to relieve himself of the dust he appeared to have gathered, before striding off before Miranda could even apologise again. He was getting used to her episodes so decided it was better to walk off quickly rather than have her wailing after him in the corridor at this time of the evening.

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Mmm, I'm enjoying writing this x) let me know what you think and I'll post the second chapter soonish!

Rhamana x


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

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In which Kanda observes a lot

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The bathroom quickly filled with steam as Kanda turned the shower faucet on, before padding back from the bathroom to the bedroom, getting out some soap and shampoo. He rarely shampooed his hair, but decided that he would today, just in a 'why not' mood. Before slinking back he stripped off his black coat, top and trousers, leaving only his undergarments on. Wandering into the bathroom while unwinding the ribbon from his long dark blue hair, he shook it out, looking at it in an assessing fashion. It looked dull and full of dust from the trek from the train station to this run down little town in Russia. He didn't like it here too much, it was quite cold, and people stared at him as he past, not that he cared what they thought. It was just standing out too much could jeopardise his mission.

_Their mission_, he corrected mentally, stripping completely and stepping into the shower, allowing the water to trickle down his upturned face and neck, before looking down, so the water penetrated his scalp, running through the long shafts of hair and cleansing it of the dirt. The water was very hot. It felt good, stinging his skin, sending a prickling sensation through him, relaxing his tired aching muscles. When was the last time he relaxed? He couldn't remember. He never allowed himself that much. He thought about Miranda. She was pretty when she smiled. He felt a slight stir in his loins, as he thought of the ebony haired woman, with her pale slender features, gentle ways, quiet tone and realised that he had feelings for her.

What would he do about them? 'Probably nothing,' he thought, 'after all, we're on a mission and Miranda is, well, Miranda. She's probably too timid to even think about kissing after all.' he smirked with a small blush at the idea of kissing the delicate woman, but quickly pushed it from his mind, instead working the shampoo through his long raven hair.

After he had finished showering, he emerged through the mist of steam, a single towel wrapped around his waist, rubbing his hair with a spare one. He felt better, he thought, walking through to the bedroom. Suddenly, he froze, he could sense another person in his room. He cursed himself for being too relaxed, Mugen was sitting propped up against the headboard of the bed.

He walked in briskly, bristling with anger, ready to strike down the person who dared to invade his privacy. Instead, he stared dumbstruck as he saw Miranda sitting perched on his bed, humming to herself as she sewed something together. He coughed, to alert her to his presence, as she seemed to not have noticed. She turned around with a half smile on her face, until she saw his present attire, which was, shall we say, not leaving a great deal to the imagination, while still covering his dignity.

'OH - MIEN GOTT-' she started, he groaned inwardly, 'here we go again..'

'Kanda-kun, I'm so sorry' she blurted, covering her eyes with her hands. He looked to her hands and could see a sewing needle and black thread in one, and his exorcist coat in the other.

'What are you doing with that?' he asked, more surprised than angry, though you'd have never picked it out from his monotone.

'I-I-I was m-m-mending it for you, I-I-I n-noticed it was ripped at the s-s-sleeve when you were helping me get my paperwork back into the case, I-I-I wanted to do s-s-something to say t-t-thank you' She stammered, turning redder and redder, still averting her eyes from his toned, lean and not to mention almost naked body.

'I didn't think you'd be finished so soon, or still be here when I started to mend it.' she further added, cautiously peeking up from her cupped hands. He had moved. He was no longer standing by the bathroom door, and by the sudden movement of the mattress, she guessed he had sat down behind her.

The hairs on the back of her neck stood up, realising their proximity and the fact they were both sat on his bed!

'Aaaaah, I think I'll just..' she made to get up, but he caught one of her hands. In the time it had taken her to stammer out her explanations and apologies, he'd managed to get out of the towel and into fresh undergarments, and some clean dark blue jeans.

_Was she really that long with her apologising, or was he just really, really quick?_

Against her better judgement, she quipped 'Are you always that fast with everything or am I just unlucky?' As soon as she'd said it, she clapped her hand to her mouth, realising the innuendo in her remark too late, and tried to bolt for the door again. But he had yet to let go of her wrist.

She whirled round with a slight look of panic on her face, to be met with Kanda's face, a lot closer than she'd have expected it to be. That familiar blush crept up again and coloured her face a pretty pink, as he tugged the arm so she ended up falling on her back on his bed.

Staring up at his beautiful onyx eyes that she could not escape, she did the only thing she thought she should in that situation. She hide her face with her hands, her embarrassment clear as day on her face.

He studied her meticulously. Her eyes, large and chocolate brown, no longer had the huge dark circles under them from lack of sleep. Her hair was loose at her shoulders, its dampness proof that she too had showered before she came to his room. It was drying naturally and falling in soft waves around her face and on the bedclothes. Her lips looked soft, with the slightest hint of pink on them that looked like gloss or lipstick. Her clothes were different too, with a dark blue dress in a similar style to the one she wore when she arrived at the Order. Without a smile, he parted her hands from her face, forcing her to look up at him, her eyes were clearly brimming with tears as he expected she thought he was going to attack her or something. Che, he would never attack a female, unless they were Akuma or Noah.

He leant down closer to her face and he could smell the faintest hint of lavender on her skin and hair, it was intoxicating. She too was looking at him breathing in his scent, and before she could realise what the scent was, he had his lips on hers, and the tingle that went down her spine was such a pleasant feeling she couldn't bare to move, lest he stopped.

One of her hands tremblingly went to touch his face, and as she did so he moved himself so he was straddling her waist without breaking the kiss. One hand roamed over her side, dipping with her curves, and she gasped as she felt his hand on her stomach, the intimacy, although through her clothing, was mind blowing. Miranda Lotto, never been kissed, now suddenly being ravished by the most attractive man she had ever seen. She would have been happy to die here and now in Yuu Kanda's arms.

He broke the kiss after a while, and continued to stare at her, while she looked up, slightly disappointed it had ended. With a slight frown she decided to try something she would never have _dared_ do if she wasn't caught in the moment. She gently tugged at his neck, which she still had her arms entwined around the back of, down towards her again. To her amazement, he complied, and again found his lips on hers, kissing her as hungrily as she kissed him. Her breath caught as one hand roved up the hem of her dress, running along the side of her pale but smooth thigh. She gulped slightly, and trembled. She wasn't sure if it was _right_ for this to happen now, when they were meant to be on a mission.

In her mind she argued with herself - 'But we aren't going searching tonight, so its ok!' 'But we really shouldn't…' 'But why not?' on and on until eventually she conceded with herself that it should not happen.

'Kanda..kun' she panted softly, 'I don't think it's a good idea to do this right now.. Not here, not tonight..'

She thought she spotted in his eyes a momentary flicker of disappointment, and she swallowed against her own as she sat up, she regretted saying no already, even though she knew it was the right choice, for now, at least.

'I'll take your coat to my room to finish sewing if you like, you must be tired' she smiled gently, pushing herself off the bed, picking up the abandoned coat, needle and thread.

'Yea.. Sure, whatever.' Kanda murmured, usually so eloquent with so few words, he now sounded like what he was in essence. A disappointed teen. 'Goodnight, Miranda' he said, to her retreating back, watching as she slid out from view, before sticking her head round the door, hesitating for a second before saying - 'Goodnight, Yuu-kun'

'Che' he tsk'd to himself. He'd let the Yuu-kun remark slide. After all, she already had murmured it several times while she was lain under him, he grinned, an unusual sight that was not quite a wide or demonic as a 'Cheshire Cat' grin, but still, for Kanda it was, very, very unusual.

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Chapter 2! I hope you enjoyed it :D I nearly had them go overboard but decided no! You must wait! Bwahaha so evul I r…

Let me know what you think of it, and I'll post the next chapter soon!

Rhamana x


	3. Chapter 3

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In which Miranda and Kanda have a 'date'

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Miranda arose brightly the next day, feeling lighter than she had done for a long time. 'Who knows,' she thought to herself, 'this could even be… love.' She smiled widely, then looking at herself in the mirror noticed to her horror, a small bite mark on her neck. It was an off-purple reddish colour, and looked rather.. horrid, she thought.

After she dressed in her uniform, she looked through her case, and found her compact of pressed powder, and tried her best to conceal it. Sighing as she looked at herself in the mirror, she delved back into the case and pulled out lipstick, in shades of pink, eyeshadow, in blues, pinks and other pastels, and a tube of black mascara. Gently she applied some of the palest blue shadow to her eyes, with a small smudge of pink lipstick to her lips. She pressed them together and smiled. She looked better already! She quickly applied a coat of mascara to her lashes and fixed her collar to hide the mark more, fluffed her hair up a little more, then, picking up Kanda's now mended coat, woefully smiled at her pin cushioned fingertips and walked out of her room, to tap on Kanda's door to see if he was awake yet.

'Kanda-kun? Kanda-kun? Are you awake yet?' she said softly through the door, tapping on it. Her only response was a muffled groan, which earned an extra flush of colour to her cheeks, as she still had last night on her mind. 'Kanda-kun? I'm coming in, its me, Miranda' she said a little louder, pushing the door. Surprisingly he'd left it unlocked. Maybe he'd fallen asleep right after she'd left. She glanced around, seeing his towel still laying abandoned on the floor from last night, and her eyes trailed towards the bed, where he was still sleeping soundly.

With a click of her tongue, not in annoyance, more in surprise he wasn't awake, she softly walked to one side of the bed, draping his coat over the chair in the room as she went. She was amazed she didn't trip over his heavy leather boots, as there was little light in the room, thanks to the Hessian curtains they use in the Inns to ensure travellers get as much sleep as their body needs, not how much the sun dictates to them.

He was sleeping on the left side of the bed, facing inwards. She leaned over, pushing strands of her hair out of her eyes, and was graced with the most angelic looking sleeping Kanda.. Looking at him laying there, with his left arm outstretched from under him, his right tucked up under his head, her heart melted in an instant. She couldn't bare to wake him, so she tiptoed, quietly from the room, shutting the door, and wandered down into the dining area of the Inn, eager to seek out a cup of coffee, and maybe something small to eat.

Possibly 10 to 15 minutes later Kanda strode in, and Miranda eyed him over the steam of her coffee, smiling to him when he noticed her. Of course he had his usual sullen expression on but Miranda didn't mind. She knew it was just his way of being, as hers was to be anxious and always nervous. Oddly today his mood had a calming effect on her, whereas before she would have felt as though she were treading egg shells.

'Eating anything this morning, Kanda-kun? The porridge is quite nice, and I believe the jam was made with cloudberry, very sweet' she smiled sweetly at him. He looked at her with an air of indifference, then stood to go order something to eat. When he came back, he had exactly what she had recommended.

'I usually never eat anything but Soba for breakfast. But I doubt that they serve it here at all, never mind for breakfast.' he stated quietly, picking up his spoon and dipping it into the sweet, milky oat cereal. Miranda watched him with interest, sipping her coffee, as he chewed the oats, and swallowed slowly. The only apparent indication he liked it was the tiniest of murmurs that sounded like 'mmm', and the fact he loaded up his spoon again after he'd swallowed the first mouthful.

She wondered if he'd noticed the small effort she had made with the makeup, and in embarrassment her hand went up to her neck where the bite was. The small hand gesture was not lost on Kanda, who wondered what was wrong with her neck, 'Maybe an insect bite?' he thought to himself, with all the innocence he did not have the previous night. He noticed her makeup though, thought it made her look very different. A tug of attraction was quickly sealed away as he spooned up another mouthful of this strange oat stuff.

After breakfast, they set off through the town in search of the Innocence. Luckily Toma had been scouting the day before they arrived, and they managed to pinpoint its location in a large, wooden structure on Kizhi island, on Lake Onega. The structure was in fact, a church. Although this massive domed structure looked less like a church then either of them had imagined.

Miranda gazed in awe at the fantastic building as their little boat crossed the lake to grant them access to the island. Kanda paid little notice to the buildings or Miranda, he was too busy trying to avoid the damned infernal rocks in the water. When the boat had landed on the side of the island, he jumped off before picking Miranda up by the waist, eliciting a squeal of shock from her. 'Id rather lift you out than have you fall in the water' he said by way of explanation.

_They walked up to the huge church, Miranda activating Time Record as she walked, the huge globe of golden glowing clock faces covered the entire island. They hoped they would find what they were looking for.._

Several hours later they returned to their boat, thankfully there had been only a few Level One Akuma there to dispatch, which Kanda did in seconds. Miranda carefully stowed the Innocence in a small pouch on her belt, and they made their way back to the shore at the other side, hopeful for a shower and some warm food. The Russian air was cuttingly cold, and they both couldn't wait to get close to a warm fire.

'After we have something to eat and clean up, shall we explore the town before heading home? We have a whole day ahead of us now' Miranda asked quietly. 'Fine' was Kanda's one word response, which amazed Miranda, and she had to make sure she had heard him right. He was allowing himself time away from being on the job? She didn't know what had come over Kanda the past day or so. He'd gone from being an absolute… well, impossible to reach person, to being.. _friendly_. Most people would probably been unnerved by this attitude alteration, but Miranda simply decided that even the grumpiest of teenagers could want to be happy at some point.

After a shower and a light dinner of a local traditional dish which Kanda conceded was also nice, they made their way out, still in their exorcist's garb. After all, they were still on the job and danger was still very much on the agenda with the Innocence fragment still in Miranda's belt compartments.

She happily wandered next to his side, and when she saw a beautiful pottery vase, she touched his arm gently, saying she was going to go look at it. Kanda was inwardly surprised at the gentle gesture she had made, thinking she must be getting a little less shy finally. With a nod he followed behind her to the market stall, with the various shapes and sizes of vases, all painted different colours.

'I think I might buy one.. just a small one, as a present for Lenalee.' she smiled at the different ones, trying to find one she thought Lenalee might like. Kanda looked over them, pretty nonplussed. They didn't interest him, these strange trinkets. What was their use besides sitting there? Completely ornamental and not worth his time. 'Oh, what about that one, Kanda-kun?' Miranda queried, and when Kanda followed her pointed finger, he saw a small vase, no more than half a hand high, painted jet black with red flowers on it.

Those same flowers again.. Just like the ones he always saw in front of his face.. 'Like I'd know anything about this stuff, Miranda' he said, trying to hide how unnerved the flower made him feel, without any care to hide his impatience. He wished he hadn't agreed to going out, that they were waiting for the train back to HQ. He hated to waste time doing pointless things. And that damned flower, a constant reminder.. But Miranda wasn't to know, why did he snap at her like that.. _Che_..

His tone hadn't gone unnoticed by Miranda. She straightened up and looked him in the eyes as best she could, being a good head shorter than him. Kanda blushed at how close she suddenly was, he could smell her lavender perfume again, and all he could see were her beautiful brown eyes studying him, and those pink lips.. aching to be kissed. She looked surprised at his sudden changes in attitude, swinging from angry to indifferent, wondering what was going on in that mind of his, that she still could not read. _And she probably would never be able to_, a small voice said sadly in her head.

He noticed her sudden sad expression and cursed himself, although he wasn't sure why. Why should he feel as if it was his fault he made her look so upset? He hadn't done anything, just said the truth, he wasn't interested in those damned stupid vases. _And he hated that flower so damned much.. He couldn't help it.._

'If you think Lenalee will like it, then I'll buy it for her for you' he said quietly, surprising himself. Why did he care so much? Why? But it had worked. Her expression cleared and she smiled radiantly at him.

'Thank you, Kanda-kun, but you don't have to buy it, I'm sure Lenalee wouldn't have use for something like that anyway, on second thoughts. Lets go back to the Inn, ok?'

Thinking to himself how he would never understand women, he nodded and pretended not to notice when she linked her arm in his. It felt nice, although he would never admit this to anyone.

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Just a quick authors note, Im going to be away til Sunday now so I'm afraid no more til Sunday for you all! Gomen :3 But look forward to the next chapter ;D


	4. Chapter 4

Halloooo =) Hope you have all had a pleasant weekend, sorry for no updates yesterday but I wasnt here til about 10 mins ago ^^ I managed to write almost 3 more chapters for this story while I was away (I couldn't help myself) and the only time I didn't think of it (or Kanda, I must admit I seem to be infatuated with him now 3) was when I was enjoying myself at the party. I just wish there had been a lot of alcohol. There was plenty I would rather forget XD  
In responce to a review about Kanda's bitemark on Miranda's neck, he gave her a hickey when they were getting cozy and close ^o^ Sorry for not explaining better =(

Enjoy the next chapter!

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In which Tyki attacks

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The journey back to the Order was looking to be completely uneventful. Kanda felt cheated by the Earl, no competition for the Innocence at all? It must have slipped under his radar. The highlight of his journey had been realising Miranda had fallen asleep on his shoulder, the train was so packed they had to share a carriage, so she was sitting next to him instead of opposite him like on the way to Russia.

'Just one more change and then we'll be back there soon..' he thought. He was not looking forward to being back. It meant that he would most likely see the baka usagi and Moyashi. If the usagi said even one word about him and Miranda, he swore he would skin him, string him up and have Jeryy boil him.

Miranda stirred on his shoulder, and he looked down at her to see her drowsily looking up at him. She looked so cute he couldn't help but stare at her.

Within an instant her body shot bolt upright, with her looking down at her hands. Kanda looked surprised, and on impulse he put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her on her side so her head was resting on his lap.

'You're tired, aren't you? Sleeping sitting upright will give you a backache, just lean on me, its fine.' he said quietly, looking down at her as she looked up at him in surprise. Nodding, she did as he said and settled down again. He ran his fingers over her back absent mindedly, not meaning it as the soothing gesture it appeared.

He looked out of the window, seeing as he couldn't move there was not much else to do. Although the scenery rushing past was vaguely interesting, it was nothing compared to listening to Miranda sigh gently in her sleep. _I'm really starting to fall for her, aren't I? _'Che' was all that came out of his mouth, his eyes narrowing, worrying. If he got attached and then either of them died.. The pain the other would go through would be unbearable.. Although it was unlikely either of them would die soon, his healing abilities seemed to be slowing more and more, he was feeling more exerted than in the past after demanding battles… and Miranda's Time Record ability meant she was a shield, a crutch.. if the enemy realised this, they would likely go for her first.. and as Time Record couldn't erase time… His eyes shut tight, he tried not to think of that. But the fact that the thought of this thin, fragile woman perishing shook him to his core, made him all the more determined.

_More determined to push her away, and lock this love of his away in his heart where it would not hurt him, or her._

After getting off that train, they had to walk through a small village to catch the last leg of their journey back to HQ. Once out of the village and back onto the open track before the station, Miranda walked on her own, Kanda striding ahead. Miranda looked at his strong back, and wondered what she had done for him to suddenly become so brusque with her.. Was it rejecting him back in the hotel? She blushed. It couldn't be, he made her sleep on his lap on the last train.. It couldn't have been the vase, he didn't seem annoyed with her that evening, or the next morning… _She would never understand men!_

She sighed and continued to walk, wondering if she would ever see that soft side of Kanda again, or if he regretted showing weakness, or, heaven forbid, he tried it on because he thought she would be easy?! Somehow that last idea of hers didn't seem to match Kanda's personality, or distinct lack of one at the moment.. Shaking her head she pushed the thoughts from her mind, and concentrated on the task at hand, getting back to _home_. Once she was there, she would ask Lenalee for advice.. But she couldn't, surely if Kanda was being so different now, he thought she was insignificant after all?

While she was lost in thought, she never saw Kanda stealing backwards glances at her. _She's got that damned worried expression on her face again, Che.. _he didn't know what to do with females. He wished he hadn't gotten lost in the moment, wished she hadn't been so kind to come mend his coat, be sat there on his bed..

Suddenly, Miranda screamed from behind him, but it wasn't the scream she made if she was falling over or something, it was of pure terror. He whipped round in time to see Miranda being held by the throat by Tyki Mikk.

'Ehh? And what have I got here?' Tyki grinned widely. 'A little kitten, with a little piece of Innocence or two, I'd wager..' The grin spread until it was almost touching his ears, his skin tone darkened and his trademark seven stigmata opened on his forehead.

'So, little kitten, give me that Innocence.' He purred, leaning closer to Miranda's face. Miranda tried to be brave, but she was so terrified of this man and she knew her Innocence would be useless offensively.

'Get your hands off her, you bastard' Kanda growled menacingly, his fingers curling around Mugen's hilt, as Tyki stood in midair, dangling Miranda by her neck still.

'Oyah? And what are you going to do about it, _shounen_? Tyki taunted, his fingers stroking Miranda's neck roughly. As Kanda went to charge Tyki, a flash of purple made him skid to a halt. 'I wouldn't do that if I were you, _shounen_. You wouldn't want my Tease to eat this pretty little kitten's heart now would you?' For a moment Kanda considered to screw it and charge him anyway, but he saw Miranda's terrified, wide eyes looking at him.

His shoulders slumped, Mugen's glow dimmed as he stood there, defeated.

'Ahh? That's better, _shounen_. If you're lucky I'll leave your _girlfriend_ alive, seeing as you seem to be so fond of her. Kanda's eyes flashed with fury. _Fuck. What was he going to do?_

Miranda's instincts kicked in, and she bit Tyki on the arm. More from shock than pain, he dropped her, and she sunk to the ground, yelling in pain as she fell and hit her head on the ground. This was Kanda's opening. He charged forward, Mugen splitting into two swords, one in each hand he lunged for Tyki.

The next thing Miranda knew, Kanda was kneeling next to her, shaking her shoulder. Tyki was gone, it seemed. When she looked up at him, he smiled, a genuine smile that made her heart skip a beat.

'Thank god' was all he said. He stood up, offering her his hand. As she took it and stood, she noticed a large crimson stain on his stomach. She gasped, and her hands flew to see the damage. Kanda waved her off. 'Che, don't bother, I heal quickly. I just can't heal stains on fabric is all.'

Her brown eyes were still wide with concern so he lifted his white undershirt in annoyance. 'See? Its healing by itself.' As Miranda watched, the long cut in his muscled stomach gradually knitted together, until all that was left was the faintest of scars, that blended in with the dozens more on his torso. She touched his stomach gently with her fingertips without thinking. 'Überraschen…' she muttered absentmindedly.

She remembered where she was and who's stomach she had her hands on, and stood up quickly, feeling rather flustered. 'I'm so sorry Kanda-kun, lets go now, before the Noah come back again.' she blurted out quickly, feeling the heat rising on her face.

'Che. Come on then or we'll be making this a long weekend break rather than a simple recovery mission.' he said, feeling slightly flushed from her gentle caressing.

Miranda grabbed her case that had been flung to the side of the path and walked after Kanda as fast as she could, as he'd already started to stride off and she was in danger of getting left behind again.

Author's Notes: Yes I have Miranda saying random things in German from time to time :p But its always in moments of shock, where most people who speak a few languages are likely to slip back into their native language ;)

Überraschen - amazing


	5. Chapter 5

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In which we have awkward silences

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Back at The Black Order, Miranda and Kanda split their separate ways to be debriefed, Miranda headed down to Hevleska to give the Innocence to her, and Kanda went to see Komui.

'I don't want any more missions with that woman' he stated to the top of Komui's bereted head, who for a change, was actually doing work. Komui looked up in genuine surprise. 'Why is that Kanda? Miranda is an excellent exorcist and highly competent. Did something happen?'

Kanda's face never betrayed him until now. He faltered momentarily, but the normally ditzy head of the branch spotted it. 'Of course not, she just annoying and weak. I do better alone that with other people.'

Komui looked at Kanda in the eyes, his chin resting on the backs of his hands. 'Kanda, I understand you have this need to be alone, but you do realise that we have to work as a team or its possible for divides to form which could destroy us from inside out.' Komui spoke quietly without a hint of anger, as he was genuinely concerned for Kanda, who had only ever made this request once before. Regarding Lavi, but he sensed that this time, it was for another reason.

'Kanda I want you to be honest with me, and then I can do my best to sort this out in the best possible way for all involved.' he said after a short pause. 'If I tell you, its to be in TOTAL confidence and it never goes past these four walls, or to anyone else, understand?' Komui nodded silently, as Kanda sighed, and told Komui everything.

Miranda walked back to her room, suitcase still in hand, hoping to see Kanda before she went to sleep that night. She just wanted to ask what was wrong, maybe it was something she could help with.. She didn't see him on their floor of the living quarters, and sighed as she unlocked her bedroom door.

As it shut behind her, she wandered over to the bed, dropping the case onto the soft springy mattress, then sinking down next to it. Images flashed through her mind of her and Kanda kissing. She blushed a deep red, it felt like a dream. _Maybe it had been_? But the bite mark was still there, a little reminder, she thought of it, with a smile. With a small groan she heaved herself off the bed, she couldn't relax, she still had to unpack, then she would go to the baths to unwind.

She had just lain the case in the bottom of her wardrobe when there was a light tap at the door. 'Who is it?' Miranda called out cheerfully. 'It's Allen, Miss Miranda, would I be ok to come in?' Allen Walker's pleasant voice chimed out from behind the door. 'Yes Allen, its unlocked, come in' Miranda called, smiling at the door, which opened to reveal the sweet young white haired exorcist smiling widely. 'Its great to see you again Miss Miranda, did everything go ok on your last mission? I pity you having to be alone with Kanda' his face fell a little at the mention of his rival.

_In the meditation room, Kanda sneezed. 'Che, must be cold in here..' _

'Oh, not at all' Miranda said, motioning to Allen to sit down. 'He was better than the Akuma to deal with at least, and we found a new piece of Innocence as well.' Miranda blushed slightly as she thought of Kanda, or more specifically, of her and Kanda _that night_. Allen noticed the blush, and asked with a concerned look on his face 'Are you ok, Miss Miranda? Do you have a fever?'

'No no of course not Allen-kun!' Miranda giggled, waving her hands in front of her quickly. 'Lets go get some lunch, I'm famished and would love to taste Jeryy's cooking again.' She said, to change the subject. Which was easy when she was talking to Allen. If she mentioned food that was.

_Was she getting more devious since she got here, or just getting to know her friends? _

'Great idea Miss Miranda, by coincidence I'm pretty hungry too!' Allen grinned, conveniently forgetting he had eaten 40 sticks of Mitarashi Dango not one hour ago.

They made their way down to the canteen area, Miranda ordered a light salad as she ate very little when she ate at all, with a glass of water. Allen on the other hand, who ordered after Miranda out of politeness, was there for a good 5 minutes reeling out his order to Jeryy, who had taken it all in his stride as the Master Chef of the Order since Allen had joined. The boy had a huge appetite but it meant Jeryy had an appreciative customer which pleased him immensely, and was probably why he gave Allen extra large portions every time..

Miranda nodded as the 15 year old sat next to her with his masses of plates, grinning happily at the prospect of ploughing through his second meal of the hour. Miranda glanced around nervously, looking for a sign of the blue haired, muscular, tall, handsome.. Wait she was getting off track. She blushed, wondering where Kanda could be. Allen noticed her looking around wistfully, but decided not to ask just now, thinking he might cause a commotion if Miranda screamed for being caught out, and it would probably make things worse for her.

Kanda strode into the canteen, growling his usual order of soba to Jeryy, who cheerfully prepared it as if he hadn't just had the teen glare at him in his usual 'I wish you all would disappear' manner.

Miranda heard the voice and had to resist turning around too quickly, for she didn't want anyone to know she was looking at Kanda. Heaven knows she had had enough of rumours about her before she arrived at the Order.

_Miranda, Miranda, unlucky lady Miranda_

_You're not popular, you're too dark, you're so slow_

_Looking for work again today?_

_You'll just be fired soon anyway!_

People treated her like she herself was bad luck, avoiding her, shunning her, giving her dirty looks if something bad happened and she was near. She hated it. She loved her new, clean slate at the Order, her friends, her job, her life.. Everything was improving for her and she was terrified of the rumours.

Kanda walked past her, and she tensed. She realised she knew him by his smell, and that scared her. _Why did she remember such a small detail? _Allen noticed her face drain even more than normal, and grabbed her hand. 'Come with me, Miss Miranda.' he smiled reassuringly at her. They put their plates in the correct places and left, which wasn't missed by Kanda. He felt secretly upset. He had to glare daggers at the finder sitting at the table in the same row, three away, to move so he could sit 'opposite' her, as close as he dared. And now that goddamn Moyashi took her by the hand and led her away?

Shockingly, he realised he felt an emotion he'd never felt before bubbling under his surface. _Jealously_. He shook his head and returned to eating his soba with short, refined strokes of his chopsticks. But his insides were churning. _What did Moyashi want with Miranda? What were his intentions?_He checked himself mentally, he sounded disgustingly jealous. He chided himself mentally but he had lost his appetite. He stared down at the half eaten soba, and with a sound of disgust picked it up and threw it in the bin before storming out. Kanda being a moody bastard was no new news to anyone so it wasn't really paid any attention to by anyone.

'Are you sure everything is ok, Miss Miranda?' Allen coaxed, certain something was wrong.

'Its, its nothing, Allen-kun..' Miranda tried to convince, but unsuccessfully.

'Did Kanda do something to you Miss Miranda? I didn't think he had it in him to hit a woman..' Allen said disgustedly.

'Oh goodness no Allen! He never hit me! He just-' she stopped suddenly, covering her hand over her mouth. Allen arched one white eyebrow. 'He just, what Miss Miranda?' he asked, not sure he liked where this was going. Miranda was blushing tomato red, and refused to say anything more. When Kanda rounded the corner looking like he was going to slice the bean sprout up for his next dish of soba, Miranda squeaked and went even deeper red, if that was possible, before running away and shutting herself in her room.

'Oi, BaKanda.' Allen said in a low, threatening voice. 'What did you do to Miss Miranda that's gotten her so embarrassed and spooked to look at you?'

'Che' Kanda tutted. 'I believe you'll find that's none of your business Moyashi.' before striding off. Allen followed him with his eyes, which widened when he noticed Kanda was _blushing._


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

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In which Miranda faces her fears

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Miranda wandered around the Order's some hundred floors, not knowing quite where she was going, but felt that the more lost she got, the less likely she'd be to see _him_. Silly, she knew, because soon she had absolutely no idea where she was. Dejectedly, she wandered over to one door in particular that caught her attention. It was the same black lacquered wooden door as every other one she'd seen since coming to the Order, but this one felt different. Slowly she walked to it and put her hand onto the round brass door handle. It felt ice cold to the touch, and gently she turned it. To her surprise it opened, and she peeked through the slightly parted door cautiously, trying to see what was in here.

She looked around the room, her eyes flicking from the floor which was carpeted in thick green grass, to the ceiling, which wasn't there. She must have made her way to the rear ground floor, which was the training area. She'd been here before and found it very relaxing. As she scanned the horizon, all she could see were trees, in a thick line as far as she could see. She decided to walk through here as it was so calm and peaceful, maybe she could gather her thoughts and think things through a little clearer now. Feeling more at peace, she took off her shoes so she could feel the cool grass tickle them as she walked, a gentle breeze teasing the curls in her mid length jet black hair. The same breeze caused the branches of the trees to sway gently as if dancing with an invisible partner.

As she walked further, intent on sitting under one of the larger trees to think for a while, she became aware of noises. They sounded like breathing, as if someone had just been running for a while. As she listened to the gentle, panting gasps, she walked closer to the source. She had to bite on her tongue to avoid the gasp that was threatening to escape her throat as she saw his long black hair swaying in the breeze, some stuck to his back which was coated in a thin sheen of sweat.

~*~

Kanda stormed off from Allen, not because he was particularly pissed, because to claim that would have been false, Kanda Yu was always pissed, but because his cheeks were threatening to be coloured in that horrid shade of pink and he would be damned if he was going to let that Moyashi see him, he had no doubt it would travel back to the long ears of that fucking rabbit who would proceed to annoy the shit out of Kanda for the foreseeable future. Not that the rabbits future would be that long if he attempted it.

He first attempted to lock himself in his room, to meditate and relax, but found himself unable to, Miranda's face invaded his thoughts every time he closed his eyes.. With a growl of annoyance he decided to go train for a few hours. His brush with Tyki Mikk had shook him more than he cared to admit, the feeling of powerlessness he had felt at the hands of the Noah left him feeling very pissed indeed.

He trained for around an hour before taking a break for a drink of cool water. Sinking down gracefully, with his legs crossed he became engrossed in his thoughts, staring down at the clear liquid in the flask. Subsequently he never heard Miranda walking nearer and nearer to him, padding quietly through the grass.

Miranda stared at his toned, muscular back which was shimmering with sweat, riddled with thin pale scars from countless battles. Her face flushed as she backed away quietly and snuck back inside the headquarters. Why did she always run into him?

She heaved a sigh of relief that he had never heard her, leaning gently against the door before pushing herself away to walk back to the canteen. She could really go for a nice strong black coffee right about now. She brightened up once arriving back, so as not to worry her lovely friends, who of course were anxiously looking for her as she'd disappeared so suddenly. She managed to convince them there was nothing wrong, that Kanda simply made her feel a little intimidated and she needed to be braver. They smiled at her. She loved having friends, and thanked God for allowing her this happiness.

The rest of the week passed quickly, she hoped for maybe another mission with Kanda, who seemed to be avoiding any contact with her whatsoever. Considering his usual aloof manner she never questioned it, secretly a little glad that she didn't have to confront him or be confronted by him. After almost a month, without a single mission with Kanda, she decided to push it to the back of her mind. She had a job to do, after all.

It was just another Mission, like any of the previous ones Miranda had fought in. No Innocence was found this time, just another of the Earl's Akuma factories which needed to be shut down. Lenalee, Allen and Miranda stepped out of the boat, their uniforms tattered, battle evident. Tyki had been there, gloating down at the three of them. For some reason he seemed to be disinterested in the exorcists since Allen's innocence had evolved into Crown Clown, he mainly watched with an interested glint in his eye from the sidelines, much like Road always had.

He'd noticed Miranda though, recognised her as the woman exorcist who bit him. He never got over that, her teeth had left a perfect semicircle of deep red marks on his arm for weeks. He grinning malevolently at her, which unnerved Miranda, she remembered him but didn't expect him to remember her after all.

He had made a remark at her which of course involved the time they had crossed paths, with Kanda. The scene replayed in her head, his sultry silken voice still echoing in her ears.

'Yo, pretty Miss Exorcist.' Tyki smiled, pointed to Miranda. 'How come I never see you with your long haired samurai boyfriend any more? Did he lose interest in you already?' Miranda had frozen stock still on hearing Tyki mention Kanda. It made her realise just how long it had been since that night.. She had to confront Kanda when she got back, she had to!

Walking away probably a bit faster than she should have, she went to her room to gather her washing things, heading for the public baths. She took a long, leisurely bath, steeling herself up for the inevitable showdown. She could still back out! But she wouldn't accept that from herself. She had to do this.

Drying her hair gently, she combed it out and walked back to her room in her black dress which was freshly washed. Once her hair was dried, she took a deep breath, checked her reflection one more time and went to knock on Kanda's door.

As she walked there, half of her mind was screaming at her to not do this. The other half was cheering her on. Before she realised it, she was at his door. This was her last chance to back down, to run away. All the ridicule she had faced in her life paled to a rejection from this man. Gulping a little, she stood straight up, took one more deep, calming breath and knocked on the black lacquered door.


	7. Chapter 7

I decided to do a quick shout out to my lovely reviewers, its your praise of my writing that's making me update this pretty much daily :p I love to write and of course when you get people telling you they love it, it makes me want to write more XD Seeing as I left you on a cliffy (I love cliff-hangers don't you? :3) I decided to update with this chapter today so you aren't left agonising.

So with much love for Glon Morski, bloodiedangle, GoddessOfVictory and Kat DMC3, I present to you, chapter 7. Thank you again for making this so enjoyable for me :)

Chapter 7

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In which retail therapy helps a lot

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Kanda was lay on his bed, feet hanging off the side as he scowled at the ceiling. He wished that he could get Miranda out of his head, but it seemed impossible to do so. He'd trained a little while longer after his break, then went and quickly bathed before getting soba. He then made his way back to his room and tried to meditate again without success. So he took to laying on his bed scowling as if it were the ceiling's fault for his current mindset.

Miranda was walking towards his room, and he thought he heard soft footsteps, women's ones because of the clicking heel on the shoe he imagined. He stilled slightly, did it stop just outside his door?

Waiting momentarily, she spoke in a soft tone, loud enough to be heard though the door.

'Kanda? Are you there? It's me, Miranda. I-I think we need to talk.' she said, managing to stutter only once. She listened for some sign the man was in the room, hearing a squeak of bedsprings shifting, followed by a muffled, aggravated sigh, before booted feet walked to the other side of the closed door. Kanda opened the door and stood leaning on the frame, staring her down. She nearly bolted away but swallowed hard and spoke quickly and quietly, for fear he would shut the door in her face before she finished.

'Kanda, that time.. In Russia, well, I was.. I was wondering.. You know.. Well uhm, I was wondering what it meant to you?' she blurted, her head hung so he wouldn't see how much she was blushing furiously. Because her head was bowed she didn't notice the fleeting expressions on his face, ranging first from shock, to longing, which quickly snapped to his usual 'I don't give a shit' expression, and then told her, well, that he didn't give a shit.

A harsh laugh assailed Miranda's ears and she knew instantly she shouldn't have done this. She could feel the tears well in her eyes from rejection and humiliation.

'You think you were something special to me? You just happened to be there, that's all.'

His heart sunk as he watched her face falling, with tears threatening to fall at any moment. He kept his steely expression on his face however. She looked like a kitten that had just been booted hard in the side.

'Oh..' was all she managed in a strangled voice, and to her consternation a sob escaped her throat. She fled, not even looking back as she went.

Kanda stared after her as she ran, his stomach full of a huge twinge of regret. He didn't want to hurt her, but he had anyway. He wanted nothing more than to run after her and hold her close to him, to tell her it was a lie and he loved her. That she haunted his dreams and every waking moment, becoming so precious to him that he couldn't imagine living without her. He sighed. That just wasn't the Kanda Yu everyone knew. Stealing one last glance before she rounded a corner vanishing from sight, he shut his door quietly.

Miranda ran through the corridors blinded with her tears, barely caring who saw her now. She didn't care any more, all that she could hear was that taunting laugh ringing in her ears. She didn't even notice Lenalee as she ran past her. The younger Chinese girl turned to stare after Miranda in shock, watching her run into her room and shut the door after her. She had seen Miranda's face and realised something was wrong. She looked down at the tray of coffee filled mugs in her hands and clicked her tongue in annoyance, deciding to go see Miranda after she had made the coffee rounds to the science department.

Roughly ten minutes and 6 attempts to shake her brother's smothering glomps off her, Lenalee walked briskly though the dormitories to Miranda's room. She knocked gently, before calling out softly to her. 'Miranda? May I come in?' she heard Miranda get up and walk to the door, and was greeted by her red puffy eyes and sad expression. 'Is everything ok?' she asked, eyes wide with concern.

'Not really, Lenalee..' Miranda smiled sadly, and it shocked Lenalee how sad Miranda looked. She had never seen her look so depressed and it upset the other girl greatly. 'I'll explain inside, if you want to step in' Miranda said quietly, sniffing a little. She looked pleadingly at Lenalee, desperate for someone to talk to, to get it off her chest. Lenalee nodded with a small smile, and walked in, Miranda closing the door after her.

Lenalee perched on the bed as instructed by Miranda, who sunk into the chair by her dressing table, and with a shuddering sigh, began to explain what had happened. Lenalee sat quietly and listened to the German woman's story, which omitted the fact that Kanda had walked out of his bathroom in only a towel, Miranda would have died than admit that. When Miranda was nearing the end of her story, the mocking laugh was still fresh in her mind and she burst into fresh tears.

'And then…' she bit back a sob with a gulp 'he said I wasn't special to him, and that it was just convenient to him that I was there that night' Miranda finished, burying her head in her palms, her shoulders racked with sobs. Lenalee jumped up and hugged the older woman, trying to comfort her. She mentally pictured Kanda and glared at the image, head full of threats. She was surprised, she didn't figure him to be a womaniser. Then she thought again, of the many times she'd seen him stealing glances at Miranda, discreetly enough, shed only just about noticed him doing it. Wondering what the hell was going through his thick skull she turned her attention back to Miranda, who was calming slowly, and beginning to apologise for being so silly crying like that.

Lenalee brushed Miranda's curls back from her face and decided something quickly. Lavi's silly schemes and personality had been rubbing off on her evidently, she had hatched a plan.

'Miranda? How do you fancy going on a shopping trip to keep your mind off things later' she smiled innocently. The older woman looked momentarily surprised but smiled and nodded in agreement to Lenalee. The younger girl left Miranda to wash her face over and collect herself while she started phase one. Talking to the idiot. And she didn't mean Lavi, for once.

She rapped impatiently on Kanda's door, walking in as soon as it was open. Kanda's face registered surprise for a moment, but was soon replaced with his usual annoyed air. He shut the door and turned around to be greeted with a sharp slap across the face.

'What the hell?! Crazy woman…' he growled, but stopped as he noticed Lenalee was watching him with a level, firm stare. The same kind she used all the time on her idiot brother. 'What?' he asked, a little worried wondering what this was about, though he had a sneaking suspicion. 'How do you feel about Miranda?' she asked, still staring, barely blinking. His eyes widened slightly at the mention of her name and Lenalee knew that she was right immediately. His words of course, contradicted this.

'What about her? She's annoying but quiet.' he said suspiciously looking at Lenalee, trying to shrug off the question innocently. If only she would stop staring at him with those damned accessing eyes! To his surprise, Lenalee sighed. 'Well, if you wont tell me then my only other option is to go ask Komui-niisan why you haven't had a mission with Miranda for over a month now. I mean, I've seen how you look at Miranda when you think no one is looking, it seems unfair that you can't spend a little time together and get to know each other.' she smiled innocently, but underneath she was grinning like Black Allen who had just won 30 straight games of poker. The threat of speaking to Komui startled Kanda, and he sighed defeated.

'Fine. I'll tell you because I trust you not to tell that Moyashi and Baka Usagi.'

_In the canteen, both Lavi and Allen sneezed in unison, before looking at each other, shrugging and continuing their conversation._

Lenalee waited patiently, looking expectantly at Kanda to start.

After being satisfied with Kanda's confession, she nodded and left the room, telling him she would come back to see him either later that day or the next day before closing his door quietly. He nodded, falling back into a brooding silence.

Miranda tried to cheer up somewhat while she and Lenalee were out, she thought Allen and Lavi would have joined them, but Lenalee convinced her that they were both busy, and the shops she wanted to go in would embarrass Allen, and Lavi would embarrass them all in return. Miranda smiled gently at this, it made it easier to guess that they were going in ladies shops, possibly figuring out Lenalee's trail of thought and her plan to make Miranda feel better. She resolved not to let the other girl down and smiled all day, trying on beautiful corsets, underwear, dresses and everything else girly you can think of. Miranda decided that she would change her appearance a little, to help her confidence and remove the dowdy aura that seemed to follow her. _And forget about him. she thought to herself, before pushing that neatly to the back of her mind, walking into a dress shop with Lenalee._


	8. Chapter 8

More than three hours later they walked slowly back to the Order, having thoroughly enjoyed themselves, chatting about the many parcels they carried in their arms. They had both been to the best salon in the town and had their hair done, their nails painted and makeup put on. They both looked amazing as was evident by the stares they got from Finder and Exorcist alike as they walked back through the dormitories. Lenalee had had her usually straight hair gathered into an elaborate style that suited her enormously, while Miranda had her hair cut a little shorter and curled softly, the curls trailing down her back bouncing as she walked. It had a beautiful beaded rose corsage in it, in a deep pink colour. She'd bought several of them, in different shades to match her several dresses perfectly.

Lenalee told her to pick out her favourite dress from the several she had bought, to get ready and meet her outside the library in about fifteen minutes. Miranda looked at her questioningly, to which she explained that she wanted 'surprise 'em'. Miranda assumed she meant Allen and Lavi as they hadn't accompanied them, and nodded before picking which was her favourite.

Putting the dress over her head carefully so as not to mess up her hair and makeup, she shook the long skirt of it out. It was a lovely deep turquoise green colour, with a silk panelled hem and slightly puffed shoulders with long sleeves. It made her look taller, and more graceful. Her eye makeup was done in shades of green with green eyeliner and black mascara, making her eyes smoulder. A smudge of deep rose pink lipstick and a light dust of pink blush finished the simple makeup. She shook her head with a smile, she barely recognised herself. Checking her hair once more to make sure nothing was caught, she zipped up the side of the dress, put on the matching shoes, court shoes finished in the silky material, and looked at the clock. It was pretty much time to go meet Lenalee.

While Miranda was getting ready, Lenalee was gliding along the corridor to Kanda's room, grinning happily. She was going to sort them out if it was the last thing she did. She fancied herself as a bit of a matchmaker after all. When she reached his door, she composed herself before knocking. When Kanda opened it, she merely said she needed to speak with him in the library in forty minutes, before walking off briskly, not letting him ask why or say no. 'He'll come' she grinned to herself. 'Whether because I asked or out of curiosity, he'll come.'

Kanda stared after her, practise kimono in hand. He was on his way to the outdoor training area at the time. 'Training will have to wait then, I guess.' he said to the kimono, an annoyed look on his face.

Lenalee then went to find Allen, and imparted a small amount of the story to him, asking for his help in making Kanda jealous. Allen grinned, he would relish in the opportunity to wind Kanda up and happily agreed to it. Lenalee told him to meet her at the library in ten minutes, to bring Lavi and not to mention this to Miranda. In fact she told him to feign innocence if Miranda enquired as to Lenalee's whereabouts. Nodding in acknowledgement, Allen went to find Lavi to let him in on the secret and get to the library in time.

Miranda meanwhile finished messing with her hair, adding a turquoise rose corsage into it. Completely satisfied she looked her best, she started to make her way to the library, her new heels clicking a quick paced rhythm as she walked.

Allen and Lavi were already in the library as planned, Lenalee had yet to turn up so they decided to hang around at the entrance to see if she had arrived yet.

Kanda made his way five minutes earlier, wanting to get it over and done with quickly as possible so he could have a few hours training before dinner.

Miranda arrived without mishap at the library entrance, hovering around like a nervous lamb, waiting for Lenalee, when Lavi and Allen spotted her from behind. Lavi obviously hadn't recognised her, as he went into 'Strike-Mode'.

'Hey good lookin'-' called out a voice, belonging to none other than the raucous red head himself. She turned around to face him, and his jaw dropped. 'Miranda? Holy cow.. You look.. Fantastic' Lavi grinned, sticking a thumb up in the air in approval. Allen, who was standing next to him was also gazing in awe, a slight blush on the young boy's face. Her transformation was quite amazing apparently, she thought to herself with an inward chuckle.

'I'm just waiting for Lenalee, have you seen her?' Miranda asked of the two boys with a smile. 'No, we haven't sorry, Miss Miranda' Allen lied smoothly with his usual cheerful smile. 'Dressed up like that for Lenalee? Is there something you girls are telling us?' Lavi teased with a grin on his face. An evil, perverted grin. Miranda flushed. Just then Lavi was given the unexpected opportunity to give the floor a cuddle, courtesy of Lenalee who had just appeared behind him.

'Geeze, I thought you'd never get here, Lenalee.' Allen smirked. 'But I thought Lavi was supposed to be the letch in this scene, now he's out cold.' Lenalee looked thoughtfully at Allen. 'Then.. you will have to replace him.' she said after a pause, grinning at Allen's expression at the sudden change of plan. Miranda looked thoroughly confused by this turn of events.

'Uhm, excuse me Lenalee-chan, what's going on please?' she asked with an uncertain smile. Lenalee turned to show her lips were curving upwards in a decidedly evil smirk. 'We're going to make Kanda jealous as fuck.'

Miranda looked even more confused by now. 'And how do you plan to do that?'

Lenalee giggled as she explained her plan, she had asked Kanda to come by soon, in time to see Miranda and Lavi acting all cosy in the library, which would hopefully spark jealousy in him to come take Miranda away, realising he would be losing her. But of course because of the recent floor hugging, Lavi was out of commission, the poor bunny. So now Allen was facing the task of filling his shoes. Miranda stood in awe of this ridiculous plan, then suddenly let out a low peal of laughter.

'What a fantastic idea… You think it will work?' she grinned, wiping away small tears from the corners of her eyes. 'I don't think Kanda even actually likes me, Lenalee, he said it himself remember?'

Lenalee looked up at Miranda with a big smile. 'He was lying, Miranda. He's in love with you but acting like a silly kid in denial.' Miranda looked genuinely shocked. 'I thought this would be an interesting way of getting him to admit it, him being the stoic type he is, defending his Fair Lady from the evil womanizing Lavi would be the most fitting option.' Lenalee smirked.

'But Lavi is kind of unconscious, Lenalee.' Miranda smiled, looking at the still out-of-it bunny. 'Well we all know how much he hates Allen, so it will work just as well if he thinks his rival is muscling in on his lady' Lenalee reasoned.

'You know what, its so crazy it might just work.' Miranda smiled to Lenalee and Allen. 'Thank you so much for doing all of this for my sake.'

'We're your friends, Miss Miranda, we would do anything in our power to see you smile.' Allen said, his wide, glowing smile genuine. Miranda could have cried. She was blessed with so many good friends it seemed too good to be true.

Lenalee looked at her small pocket watch. 'Kanda himself should be arriving shortly, lets get Lavi out of sight and sort out how you two are going to be acting for his eyes to see.' she smirked, bending down to grab Lavi's legs, motioning to Allen to grab his arms.

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OMG FINALLY - lets me upload this chapter T_T Ive been trying all damn day :p So much for a chapter a day, I'll try and get chapter 9 written up ready for saturday or sunday, dont like uploading without having some ready done :p

I have to give credit to Glon Morski for this chapter and the story's current deviation, her idea in the reviews of using Allen in Lenalee's plot to make Kanda jealous was sheer genius. It had to be added so I changed my story a bit to add this! It also makes it longer x) I'm having too much fun with this one to want to end it any time soon so kudos to Glon-Chan for the awesome idea :D

Question answers: Kat DMC3 - I'm afraid I'm still undecided as to if Tyki will show up again soon, I would like him to, its just a case of getting him to be interested enough to grace the fic again T_T


	9. Chapter 9

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Chapter 9

Lavi out of the way, Lenalee instructed Allen and Miranda to sit on one of the arched window seats together, sharing one book. Lenalee stood back to admire her handiwork, and was amazed at how cute Allen and Miranda looked together. What was even more surprising was how well Allen was doing, him being a perfect little gentleman really helped this situation look more pure than it would have done with Lavi..

Miranda felt a little uncomfortable, and Allen could tell. She looked all rigid and tense. 'Miss Miranda, you wont convince anyone if you look like that, you look like I'm holding you captive or something' he smiled. 'Oh? Oh I'm so sorry Allen, I'm just nervous..' she smiled back politely. Allen started to tell some old jokes he learned from Mana, and then a few of the more decidedly seedy ones he had heard Cross use on the ladies. Little did sweet little Allen know that Cross' 'jokes' were pickup lines. Miranda was soon giggling at the mistake Allen was making, but didn't like to say anything.

Lenalee watched from a table opposite them. She couldn't hear what Allen was whispering to her but damn, they made a good couple! The sun was shining though Miranda's glossy hair, her face lifted from all worry as she giggled happily, Allen looked good too, with his smile wide and genuine. Like a couple of little lovebirds, Lenalee smiled, pretending to read her book. A small creak could be heard as the library door opened, and Lenalee stood up. Now was her time to act.

'Kanda! Over here!' she called in a whisper. She was in a library after all. Kanda sauntered over to her with his air of annoyance quite apparent. 'What did you want, Lenalee?' he asked impatiently, aching to get this done with so he could get on with his daily training. 'I just wanted to speak with you more about Miranda, I figured the library would be nice and quiet at this time of day' she said innocently, and walked close to where Miranda and Allen were play acting, under the guise of returning the book she had been 'reading' to the correct shelf.

Miranda giggled suddenly and Kanda's head shot round to the direction of the laugh. His eyes widened visibly as he saw Miranda, _his_ Miranda, who looked so beautiful today he was amazed, and who was she with, the woman of his dreams, to be dressed up like that? Allen Walker. He felt sick to his stomach looking at them. Lenalee grinned inwardly and exclaimed in false shock 'Oh my, is that Allen and Miranda?' wide eyed, she continued. 'I didn't know Miranda had gotten over you that easily' Lenalee looked up at Kanda to gauge his reaction. She expected him to be blazing in anger, but was shocked to see that tears were forming in his eyes. He stalked off without taking another glance.

Miranda who had been watching this from the corner of her eye, hoping to see him stalking up to take her away from Allen, gave a small gasp of dismay to see him walking off. She glanced after him sadly, wondering why he hadn't reacted like Lenalee had guessed. Allen had stopped talking to glance worriedly after Kanda too, and he gave Miranda a gentle push. 'Go after him, Miss Miranda!' he urged.

Miranda looked at Allen wide eyed, before her expression became more serious. With a quick nod she scrambled to her feet and flew after Kanda.

'What the fuck was that?!' Kanda thought to himself, furiously scraping at the tears in his eyes. 'Why was she all over Walker like that, that fucking Moyashi! I'll fucking kill him!' Suddenly he stopped, and laughed. It was his own fault, he reasoned. He'd toyed with Miranda's heart and emotions and like a kid playing with matches he'd gotten burnt. He had no one to blame but himself for his own mistake. He started to walk again, and vanished from view, going down one corridor to go back to his room, as Miranda flew around the corner. She'd lost him! She couldn't see him anywhere!

In blind panic at his reaction, tears started to fall from her eyes. _She'd hurt him! Lenalee told her he was crying! _She didn't know which way to turn, where to find him. She started back towards the library, to find Allen and Lenalee again to get them to help her find him. They split up and started to search the Order for Kanda. Miranda was beside herself with worry at what he might do.

Kanda shut his bedroom door quietly, a small bag in his hand. He would leave the Order for a day or two, he couldn't bare to face Miranda if she was going out with Walker. It would kill him to see her smiling like _that_ at him. The kind of smiles he wanted to be directed at himself. Walking off down the corridor, he crashed into Allen, who skidded around the corner at the same time he was about to walk around it. 'Kanda! I'm so glad I found you! I was loo-' Allen started, before Kanda's fist connected with his face. 'Stay the fuck away from me, Moyashi, you make me fucking sick to look at.' Kanda snarled, standing over Allen who was on the floor groping the side of his face, his left cheek throbbing from the punch. Kanda then swept around Allen and walked away as Allen stared after him. Just like Lavi's plans, Lenalee's had caused more harm than good, even if she meant well.

Allen sat in a daze long after Kanda had gone, damn he was an idiot! Didn't he realise that he was supposed to get jealous and come and steal Miranda from Allen, not get all emo and run away? Kanda, he decided, didn't work the same way most people would think he did. He was actually quite a sensitive person underneath the stoic bastard mask. He was only human though, Allen reasoned, picking himself up off the ground and while still holding his smarting cheek wandering to find Lenalee and Miranda to tell them what had happened.

Miranda of course, panicked even more than she already was. Bless her she was in floods of tears, convinced she'd only succeeded in pushing Kanda away from her further, not to mention getting poor Allen beaten up like this. She decided that she could only do one thing, go after Kanda. Running as fast as her heels would allow, she fair flew through the Order, to the underground canals.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I'm so glad you're all enjoying this still =) I had so many other things to do I totally forgot about the fiction. Gomen ne : I'm busily writing chapter 11 as you read this, making up for lost time! :p

And yes, I know Kanda seems to be totally OOC but its very difficult to portray an impassable person falling in love without repeating myself a million times, so I've tried to evolve his character to be more of a stubborn teenager, which works since he is XD

So once again, thank you for your support, and please keep reviewing! It encourages me to keep going :p Ideas are much appreciated too, I'm wondering where to take the story next :p

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Chapter 10

Meanwhile Kanda was busily putting his small bag into one of the boats, before jumping in and picking up the bargepole. He looked up at the ceiling of the cavern and sighed. Even if he went away for a day or two wouldn't it still be the same when he got back? He realised to his disgust just how much weakness he was showing by running away like this. His stoic bastard routine would be completely ruined, not to mention he would have zero self respect. With a grimace he put the bargepole down, and jumped back out of the boat with the grace of a cat.

'Kanda! Kanda!' he heard someone calling him. Turning round he saw Miranda running towards him, he face flushed, tears running down her cheeks. Kanda felt a tug on his heart that mirrored itself in his stomach, before turning away from her. 'Kanda.. I caught you before you went, I'm so glad… I-I wanted to tell -' 'Shut up.' Kanda interrupted. 'I don't want to hear about anything you have to say!' his right hand was clenched into a fist, and it trembled slightly as he tightened it.

Miranda stood looking at him, panting slightly. She was afraid of him because right now, he looked really angry. 'Kanda..' she murmured sadly, not making any attempt to say anything else. 'We're even now then Miranda.' Kanda said suddenly. 'I broke your heart before, and now you did the same to me.' Miranda blinked in surprise at this veiled admission, looking at Kanda who was trying hard not to lose his self control. She took a tentative step towards him with one hand outstretched to touch his arm, and he instinctively moved away. Her hand stayed in mid air, and she looked up at him in dismay.

With a 'che' he walked off, leaving Miranda standing in momentary shock. She whirled around and went to run after him, tripping on the hem of her skirt in the process.

WHAM.

She hit the floor, and after grimacing from the pain looked up to find Kanda knelt down to help her up. She took his hand and felt her heart beat faster, then on impulse she flew into his arms. Kanda went rigid with shock as he felt her lips on his, then softened and pulled her closer to him. Feeling dizzy from the closeness, Miranda wrapped her arms around his neck, a soft moan in her throat as he squeezed her waist gently. Reluctantly breaking the kiss suddenly, Miranda started to cry.

'Kanda.. I'm sorry, me and Allen, we aren't..' she said between sobs. 'It was Lenalee's idea to get you jealous, I didn't think that you would react like that, I'm so sorry..' she hung her head, shameful she had hurt his feelings, wishing she hadn't gone along with the scheme now. To her surprise, she felt his arms around her, holding her tightly.

'I'm glad you did it. It made me realise how much I need you with me. I love you, Miranda Lotto.' Kanda breathed in her ear, tightening his grip as if he were afraid she would run away again.

'Say that again Kanda? I think I misheard you' Miranda teased, still slightly in shock. 'I love you Miranda, I'll say it as many times as you need to hear it to believe its true.' Kanda repeated in complete sincerity. Miranda smiled happily and cuddled up into his shoulder, taking in his scent which she had come to love so very dearly.

'Do you want to be public about us Kanda? Because I know you have your image after all, wouldn't it be ruined if you show that you've let someone into your heart?' Miranda asked worriedly. Kanda looked down at her in surprise, this thought had yet to cross his mind. He was still considering what to say to Lenalee, if he should apologise to the Moyashi etcetera. Not answering her, he continued to look down at her, her anxious face upturned to look in his eyes. Leaning down, he kissed her forehead. 'Miranda you should know that I don't give a damn what people think about me, of course if you want people to know, then its fine with me.' he smiled at her, and her face instantly lifted into a bright smile. God she was gorgeous when she smiled.

Together they walked back from the underground canal to the main area of the Order, not holding hands but feeling the pleasure of each other's company greatly. Miranda didn't want to make a big show out of it after all, for as much as she loved Kanda, she still had a great deal of shyness to overcome and of course she had to think about Kanda too. Even if he said he didn't care she felt sure that the whispering behind his back would annoy him greatly. Miranda went to break away from their casual stride, saying she was just going to find Lenalee and Allen, to let them know she had caught Kanda in time. Kanda caught her wrist, and pulled her to him and kissed her deeply. She felt herself melt against his strong lean frame, and he broke the kiss without letting go.

'Do you have any free days off this week?' he asked her, looking down at her with what passed as a smile for him. 'Yes, actually, today and the next two days are my personal days.' Miranda stated, looking up at him with a hint of curiosity in her eyes. 'Why do you want to know, Kanda?'

'No reason.' he said firmly, before adding. 'Come meet me at my room when you're done with Lenalee and the Moyashi.'


	11. Chapter 11

Oh mai. It took me a long while to upload something eh? Gomen! Had my big brother visiting so my computer hours were very restricted, just managed to finish this one right now. It might take me a while to upload more because Id like to get a few chapters written before I upload more. If you would rather I uploaded them as I finished each one (though it might be longer in between uploads) please let me know.

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It took Miranda quite a while to find Allen and Lenalee, they were still up in arms about Kanda's behaviour, which was rather understandable. Once she had explained roughly that she had stopped Kanda from leaving, she excused herself and flew through the corridors in her excitement to be with Kanda at last.

Kanda meanwhile, lay on his bed, planning his next move. He had made no attempt to unpack the small bag he threw down next to the bottom legs of his bed. His eyes narrowed as a small grin played over his face. He'd make it up to Miranda for how he'd treated her. He swore it to himself and Kanda was not one to break promises. Rolling onto his stomach, he looked out of the window. It was mid afternoon by now, he hoped Miranda would be here soon. He felt lonely without her. That was a new feeling to him, he who always had preferred to be alone. For once, he chose not to mind the fact that it was a weakness, and simply enjoyed the new sensation.

He'd decided that he would make it up to Miranda by taking her away for the next few days. He was due some time away which he would have used to train, but decided that she was more important right now. The old, pre-love Kanda would have laughed. This was most unlike him already. He didn't care, Miranda made him feel more alive than anything, even the hardest battle that made every nerve tense, the blood rushing faster, felt like nothing compared to how elated he felt with her.

_Knock Knock._

Kanda glanced over at the door with a smirk, he expected it to be Miranda. Sliding off the bed, he almost hummed to himself as he strode over, opened the door and leaned expectantly on the frame. Unfortunately, it was not Miranda. It was Leverrier, with an unhappy Komui Lee behind him, clutching his favourite coffee mug. 'What do you want?' Kanda all but snarled at the unpleasant man in his doorway. Leverrier looked unperturbed as he stared levelly at the Japanese exorcist.

'You have a new mission, Kanda. You leave right now.' He said, with that slight, smug smirk he always wore on his face. Kanda's face darkened as he regarded the older man with little but contempt. 'And why _me_?' he growled in a low tone, not liking the fact that _he_ had been chosen for another mission right _now_! Leverrier looked at him in a displeased manner. 'Because _you_ are our most capable exorcist not currently on a mission. I trust there are no objections?' Kanda 'che'd'. It mattered very very little if he had any objections. He _had_ to go. A questioning glance at Komui dismissed any thoughts that this was because of Miranda, so without another word he grabbed his uniform jacket, the small bag of clothes and Mugen, stalking off to the canals for the second time that day. _If only he had time to tell Miranda.. _If only he didn't have to go would have been better, he thought.

Leverrier gave a nod to Komui, and strode off looking pleased with himself. Komui watched him retreating and sighed. He didn't know what Leverrier was thinking. He didn't want Kanda going off on a mission again already, he was still not over his last injuries. Sometimes, Komui thought he was far too soft for his position. All the people under his command he thought of as family rather than subordinates. He didn't even know if Miranda and Kanda had reconciled, or what was going on between them. He didn't know if it would do more harm than good to tell Miranda that Kanda had been called away on a mission again already. He sighed again and walked off back to his office. He still had paperwork to do and it looked like another long day.

Too late, Miranda finally reached Kanda's door, and knocked on it. Rocking back on her heels excitedly, she waited for him to answer, frowning slightly when the door wasn't opened for her. She knocked again, and tried the handle. The door opened, to reveal an empty room. Miranda's brow furrowed. He had told her to meet her at his room, hadn't he? She was sure he had. So where was he? She walked into his room cautiously and looked around. He definitely wasn't in here. Mugen and his jacket was missing too. And so was that bag… Of course, Miranda instantly thought he'd run off again for some reason. But she didn't know why! He had nothing to be jealous of, which was why he was making to leave the first time..

Feeling quite disappointed, she closed his door and walked slowly to the canteen. Maybe he was around somewhere?

Dejectedly, she walked from the canteen, she hadn't found Kanda there, his usual scowl on his face as he delicately ate his Soba like always. She wondered where on earth he had disappeared to. As she walked around, she heard the delicate strains of piano music, tinkling on the air in quite a pleasant fashion. Peeking around the door of the Order's music room she saw Allen, seated at the dark lacquered grand piano, his eyes shut, mouth curved upwards in a contented smile. Carefully she edged into the room and sat on one of the chairs that lay vacant near by, and listened to his playing. It calmed her immensely and she smiled happily to herself.

She became lost in her thoughts and it took her a few minutes to realise Allen had stopped and was currently standing next to her.

'Miss Miranda? I thought you were going to see Kanda?' he asked, looking quite surprised to see her. 'Has he said something again?'

Miranda stared wide-eyed for a moment, she had temporarily forgotten about Kanda vanishing so abruptly.

'No, I couldn't find him' she stated quietly, worry evident in her eyes.

'Well, I'm not entirely sure but I'm sure I spotted that bastard Leverrier around before.' Allen scowled, his cussing was evidence that he quite obviously despised the man. 'Let's go ask Komui.'


	12. Chapter 12

_**Chapter 12**_

_**Komui raised his head from his desk, where he had annoyingly fallen asleep again. Had he imagined the knocking on his office door or? 'Come in?' he called out cautiously, thinking he might finally be going completely mad. It turned out he was not going mad, ask the door opened to reveal Allen and Miranda, who walked in. Miranda looked worried as always and Komui guessed that maybe she and Kanda had made up. Lenalee had imparted information on her little scheme to her brother earlier, because she was worried she may have caused more harm than good.**_

_**'Sit down you two, how can I help you?' the young Chinese man asked of the two of them.**_

_**'Komui-san, do you know where Kanda has gone? Miranda was supposed to meet him and he didn't show up.' Allen spoke for Miranda, who sat blushing, staring intently at her hands.**_

_**Komui smiled gently. He knew how Kanda had reacted to Lenalee's scheme so could guess why Miranda was so worried. 'You don't need to worry Miranda, he hasn't run away. He was sent away to London on a mission, one that he was unable to turn down. Since his Innocence sync rate increased he has become one of our strongest and so Leverrier insisted he be sent on this mission to test his ability.' Miranda visibly became more relaxed at this, and smiled gently. 'Thank you Komui-san, I'm so sorry to be a bother.' she said softly, averting her eyes from Komui's gaze. She still felt embarrassed about the reasoning behind her and Allen asking this of Komui. **_

_**'Well, if that's all that you needed to know from me, I would be obliged if you would allow me to continue this work, Reever is being a really meanie, making me do all this work!' the supposedly in charge Komui pouted, all of a sudden looking less capable by the minute, conveniently forgetting that Reever was simply making him do what was supposed to be Komui's work in the first place. Miranda and Allen nodded, and walked out, closing the door behind them. Miranda excused herself and went back to her room, smiling to herself. Well, she would have to make sure Kanda got a nice surprise on his return..**_

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_**'Ahh, we meet again, Mr. Kitchen Knife…' Tyki smirked, treading thin air just to look cool. Kanda looked up at the dark skinned man with a look that would strike fear into any mortal. This was not going very well. 2 level threes and a Noah. Not to mention the village they were standing in. Inwardly grimacing he tried to ignore the screams of the villagers who fled after seeing these two monsters, who were hell bent on killing every one of them. If he ignored the village, then he and the innocence might have a chance of getting out of this shit.. **_

_**Miranda smiled happily. She was pleased with her choice of outfit for Kanda's arrival back home. She just hoped he would like it too. She giggled nervously before carefully the items of clothing back up and placing them into one of the drawers of her dresser.**_

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_**Kanda growled lowly in pain, resting most of his weight on Mugen. His right leg was probably broken. He'd lost a fair amount of blood, but he was alive. The damned Noah had disappeared after Kanda had sliced through the two level threes, and turned his attention towards Tyki. With another growl he pocketed the newly retrieved innocence and slowly turned to find the infirmary. With any luck his wounds would heal before he got there or passed out, and all he would need would be a nice, hot bath.**_

_**When he arrived at the infirmary, he was less healed than he would have liked. He was still favouring left leg to stand on, and the cuts hadn't fully knitted. Thankfully he was no longer bleeding. Groaning lowly he staggered into the infirmary where the nurse immediately rose to attend to his injuries. **_

_**The tattoo had grown slightly more. He glanced at it with more worry in his mind that what showed on his face. He knew that the third petal had just fallen from the lotus, but he would be fine. For now. His leg had healed overnight after a good nights sleep and some food, even if he could not get the soba that he so wanted. After a 20 minute bath, he was ready to start back to the Order, and left after giving a word of thanks to the pretty red haired nurse who attended to him last night. She looked like a mix of Lenalee and Miranda. He smiled fondly, which caused the nurse to blush slightly. The smile wasn't directed at her but it definitely made the girl's day a lot brighter. With a bright smile she rose and waved him off, patting her swelling stomach lightly.**_

_**Kanda walked briskly to the nearest train station, which was Paddington. After navigating the many platforms, he finally found the right one for the train back towards the Order. For once he was opting the civilian way of boarding a train, instead of his favoured method, jumping onto the speeding train from a nearby bridge. He smirked inwardly, he must be getting tamer in his old age..**_

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_**Ahh :3 did you notice who the nurse was? ;D If you've been reading my OC story (shameless plug) you'd probably guess! :3 I'm such a genius -beams proudly at herself- Sorry to keep you waiting on this chapter, but as I'm currently writing this author's notes my house has no internet. Which is a bit of a bummer. So by the time I get this chappie up I'll have it back, but this explains the reason why I didn't update when I planned! -starts to write chapter 13 for something to do - -._-.**_


	13. Chapter 13

-Creeps into the set- Oh my. I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting so long DX Unfortunately my muse seemed to have gone on an extra long holiday :'( Couldn't think what to do next, plus I've been so incredibly busy lately :'( I'm engaged now if anyone cares! Lol. I reread the story last night and I've had some nice new ideas (fan girls rejoice!) so I'll try and continue on :3 I'm so sorry to keep you all waiting so long.

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My Fair Lady

Chapter 13

The Disappearance of Miranda Lotto

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Miranda was panting, her face coated in a fine sheen of sweat. Allen was training with her, she'd asked him to help out while she tried to use her Innocence more offensively, to become stronger so she didn't always have to rely on her friends.

"Miss Miranda, I think we should take a break now!" Allen called out, deactivating Crowned Clown. Miranda nodded with a smile, deactivating Time Record. She was improving. She'd managed to make small force field like shields out of the clock faces that appeared.

"I'll just go freshen up in the baths first Allen-kun, go on ahead to the canteen if you like, I'll meet you there in a while." Miranda smiled, and Allen happily went on ahead, already drooling at the prospect of what he would be ordering and eating in a few moments.

Miranda hummed gently to herself as she walked back to her room, gathering her bathing things and wandered back out, glancing at herself in the mirror. All the extra training she was making herself do had given her face a good tint of pink, which she was pleased about. Closing the door without looking behind, she never noticed the glowing purple butterfly that was fluttering ominously close to her window…

Miranda sighed, staring at her hands as she relaxed in the hot spring style baths. The puckered skin was still slightly sore, a testament and reminder of the first Noah she ever met, Road. It had faded a lot since then, but the memory was still quite fresh, the terror she'd felt as she'd watched Road's candles pierce Allen's left eye, the almost inhuman, strangled scream of pain that he had issued had made her hair stand on end. For some reason her train of though brought her to Kanda. It had been a week since the library incident, since he accepted the fact that he loved her as much as she loved him, since he had been sent on a mission straight away, so suddenly she thought he had left her again. She missed him so much, hoped he was safe and would be returning to her soon. Sighing again, she finished washing and carefully stepped out of the bath. Wrapping her hair in a towel, she dried herself and dragged on a large, dark green robe which she tied tightly to her. Taking the towel off her head, she fluffed her hair out a bit and combed it though. She carried her things back up to her room pushing the door closed behind her without looking back. She didn't notice the tall dark figure, leaning on the wall behind the door. When she heard the door click shut on its own she loosed the robe slightly and dropped the bathing things and her exorcist suit on the bed, turning to the wardrobe to pick out new clothes, when she spotted a glint of something in the mirror.

Whirling around she gasped, and almost screamed until he covered her mouth with one hand. "Miranda, be quiet, its me, Kanda!" He sighed exasperatedly, as realisation dawned on her and he could imagine the apologises streaming from her mouth if he let her go. Dimly he realised she wasn't struggling violently, but her eyes were watery, and her arms were lifting as if to embrace him. Releasing her mouth from his hand, he claimed it again with a long kiss, one which he'd dreamed of for a long time. Hungrily, she kissed him back with enthusiasm, trailing her arms along the strong line of his back, moaning gently as he pulled her in closer, crushing her to him possessively.

Neither of them noticed the purple butterfly, still floating around Miranda's window…

Finally they released each other, gasping for breath, drinking in the face of the other. Miranda stared at him longingly, wanting more than kisses. Not that she could bring herself to say it… The blush on her cheeks intrigued Kanda, and he brushed his rough fingertips over them, his thumb rubbing her rosy bottom lip, feeling her warm breath as she panted softly. She leaned into his touch willing him, silently begging him to take the initiative again, like he had so long ago.. She moaned softly remembering how it had felt to be trapped beneath his frame, terrifying at first but then it started to feel strangely good.. She wrapped her arms around his chest, but started in alarm when he winced slightly.

"Oh my god, are you alright Kanda-kun? Did I hurt you? I didn't think I was that strong I.. I.." She blurted out, looking anxiously up at him. He couldn't help but smile slightly at her anxiety, she was so concerned about him it touched something he'd never felt before, it was a nice feeling to have someone care about you that much, he realised.

"Yes, yes I'm fine.. Just I'm not healing as fast as I used to.. I broke a few ribs on my last mission, as well as a leg-"

"OH MY GOD WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE THEN WE NEED TO GET YOU TO THE INFIRM-" She squealed in alarm, trying her best to pull him towards the door and drag him down to the infirmary, but he tugged her back.

"Don't worry, I was on my way there after I'd seen you for a little while, but you can't go running around dressed like that, can you?" He smirked, gesturing at her robe, which had become even looser since she had discovered him. She yelped as she realised the front of the robe was almost completely open, exposing part of her breasts and quickly pulled the sides in to cover herself again. His smirk widened ever so slightly, and he tilted her head up with one finger. "Shame.. I was enjoying the view.." Miranda's blush deepened and she felt an overwhelming desire to punch him in the arm, but she resisted, for one, he was injured and for two, where the hell did that desire even come from? She wasn't a violent person.. She instead settled for pouting at him and shoving him towards the door.

He smiled genuinely this time, and kissed her once again, running his fingers through her hair. "I'll come back later, ok? Watashi no tenshi." He turned and walked out of the door, with a slight limp, Miranda noted with worry. Then she realised what he'd called her! She almost giggled with happiness. It was finally time for her to wear that outfit she'd saved for him. With a smile she opened the drawer in her dresser and pulled out a dusky rose coloured corset, followed by matching underwear and stockings. Thankfully the lacing on the back was purely ornamental, it hooked at the front with many small eyelet fastenings. She eyed herself critically in the mirror when she was done, the corset pushed her miniscule breasts up to give herself some cleavage, and her shapely, long legs looked good in the rose stockings. Carefully, she piled her hair up on the back of her head, pinning it back before pulling strands out to frame her face, like she'd seen in one of the pictures on the salon walls. She fixed a matching pink corsage to her hair, applied a tiny bit of makeup and slipped on some silver heeled shoes. Turning around once with a smile, she shrugged her robe back on, and sat on the bed to wait for Kanda.

"My my.. don't you look stunning, little kitten." The silky voice purred behind her, and before she could react, a strong hand was around her mouth, the other around her waist as he pulled her back into Road's door, before casually flipping a note on her bed.

'I've got your pretty kitten, Mr Kitchen Knife…'

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:O:O:O Tyki returns! I tried to make this chapter a bit longer, seeing as I've made everyone wait a ridiculous length of time.. IM SORRY IM SORRY! I feel like Miranda now.. XD I'll try and have the next chapter up in a few days, if its longer than a week you have my permission to hunt me down and force me to write XD

~Rhamana


	14. Chapter 14

Ahh, I have some good ideas for this one now :3 Not sure how long its going to go on for but I think I can get maybe 3-4 more chapters out of it before it starts to become bland, boring and repetative XD

Enjoy! :3

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My Fair Lady

Chapter 14

The Mission

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It took Kanda a few hours of being scolded by the homely nurse in the infirmary before he was allowed to leave, and he took long, impatient strides back to Miranda's room, blocking out the nurse's chiding tones that were following him along the corridor. He didn't want to know that he could be risking making his wounds worse by continuing to push himself, he just wanted to see her.

As he strode past the canteen, he was spotted by Allen, who was on his way to find Miranda himself, she never met him in the canteen like she said she would, and he was worried. On seeing Kanda, however, he smirked and decided he would keep Jeryy company instead, and maybe get some more Mitarashi Dango. He liked that plan much better, he though as he walked back into the canteen smiling to himself.

When he got to her door, he didn't bother to knock, just walked in, with a relaxed expression on his face, which quickly vanished when he noticed she wasn't in her room. Quickly looking around, he spotted the piece of card laying on her bed, and his eyes widened as he read what was written on it.

'I've got your pretty kitten, Mr. Kitchen Knife.'

Kanda froze as he read those words. How the fuck had a Noah managed to get into the Order building? He had to raise the alarm, and quickly. Sprinting from Miranda's room he ran to Komui's office, banging so ferociously he almost knocked the door off its hinges. Not giving Komui time to answer, he walked in, his expression so serious it seemed to infect the Supervisor, staying his usual happy-go-lucky, annoying demeanour.

"Kanda?" Komui queried, looking at the teen's serious face.

"It's Miranda. She's been kidnapped. By a Noah." He stated grimly, holding the note in his right hand. Komui strode over towards Kanda and took the note from his fingers, reading before looking even more grim.

"Do you have any idea where he might have taken her?" Komui asked calmly, a little too calmly for Kanda's liking.

"No." He hated admitting it but he was clueless as to where the bastard could have taken her. He needed to calm down, he was thinking too irrationally, he wouldn't be any use to anyone in this state.

Komui looked at both sides of the paper, and his eyes narrowed as he caught a potential clue. The paper was a piece of an envelope, and it had part of an address on it. A Russian address.

"Kanda, does the Russian town of Kashin mean anything to you?" he asked. Kanda looked up abruptly. That was the town that he and Miranda had gone on a mission to months ago. They had met Tyki Mikk there, it must be a connection.

"I'm leaving right now." Kanda started, turning on his heel to leave.

"Kanda, wait, I'll get Lenalee, Lavi and Allen to go with you. You don't know how many Akuma and Noah you will be up against." Komui called, Kanda turned and nodded in reply, then left for his room to pack a few things. Before he left, he looked at the Lotus. Still only 3 petals fallen. Now he had something in his life that was just as important to him, if not more important, as that cursed flower. Slamming his door shut he strode for the canals, Lenalee, Lavi and Allen were there waiting for him. All looked serious, even Lavi didn't smile, they knew the gravity of the situation and were just as worried about Miranda as Kanda was.

The whole journey to Moscow was quiet. Kashin was another switch once they got there, and then it would be five more hours before they arrived at Kashin. Kanda was brooding silently, as Lenalee looked at him worriedly. Lavi and Allen had volunteered to get some food for the four of them, disappearing down to the buffet carriage in the train.

"Kanda?" Lenalee asked anxiously. She was really worried about him, his mood wasn't his usual stoic, quiet because I want to be mood. "Are you alright?"

He snorted. "The woman I love has been kidnapped, Lenalee, how could I possibly be alright?" he snapped, almost immediately regretting the words as they fell from his mouth. Letting out a noise of disgust he stood and strode wordlessly from the compartment.

Lenalee looked shocked at first, but then smiled gently. His outburst meant that even though he was worried sick about Miranda, it meant that he wasn't going to react the same way as he did in the library, something Lenalee had been worried about since her brother had called her, Allen and Lavi into his office to brief them on this emergency mission.

* * *

Miranda woke in a daze, she had no idea where she was, but her memory of what had happened before she fainted was coming back to her. Her eyes widened as she realised with fright that she was being held captive by a Noah, and she didn't have her innocence with her! Not for the first time, she felt small and helpless. With a great deal of difficulty, she stood from where she was laying, on a bed, her legs shaking and threatening to give way from under her. Taking a deep breath, she tied her gown tighter to herself, feeling incredibly vulnerable, not just because she didn't have her innocence, but because of what she was wearing. A great wave of panic threatened to engulf her if she didn't calm down and try to think of a logical way to escape. As she stood thinking, she realised she could hear footsteps, getting closer to the door. Without thinking she flung herself back down on the bed and tried to look as unconscious as possible.

"Ehh? Still sleeping, little kitten?" she heard his voice purr. The footsteps came closer to the bed and her heart started to race, beating a violent tattoo against her ribcage as if it were trying to escape. Something was put down gently and she felt the weight of the bed move, as Tyki sat on the bed. He smirked, he could see her tremble. He could feel her raised heartbeat. There was no tricking him into thinking she was still unconscious. With a grin he stroked a hand down her side, the grin widened as he felt her body go rigid. He grabbed hold of her wrist and pulled her over onto her back, quickly pinning her wrists above her head. He smiled down at her, as she stared back with wide, terrified eyes that brimmed with tears. With a look of interest, he lowered his head down, until his lips were level with her ear. He could feel her breathing uneven and shaky.

"Do you know why I've brought you here?" he whispered, and she shuddered as the warm breath hit her ear. After a small pause, she shook her head, and closed her eyes tightly. The only thoughts going through her head were that she was going to die, and how much she wished she could see Yuu right now.. Looking down at her, Tyki's smile vanished, and he released her hands. Shifting away from her slightly, he plucked a cigarette from a packet and lit a match with a flourish. Miranda stiffly sat up and clutched her knees to her chest, backing away into the corner, still watching him with an odd mixture of curiosity and fear.

"I didn't expect you to." he smirked, taking a heavy draw on the smoke, right down to the bottom of his lungs. After what seemed like an age, he exhaled, the dark gray smoke trickling out from between his parted lips. He smirked, and looked at her over his shoulder. "Would you believe me if I told you I love you?"


	15. Chapter 15

My Fair Lady

Chapter 15

Confusion and Disbelief

* * *

"Would you believe me if I told you I love you?" Miranda stared at Tyki, her eyes widening more every second as his question sunk in. "WH-WH-WHAAAAAAT?" she squealed, her back plastered to the wall behind her, her manner more as if she'd been placed in a cage with a very hungry lion than with a man having a smoke. Said man glanced at her from the corner of his eye, his fingers holding his cigarette to his lips. A grin formed on the lips, and he chuckled darkly.

"I wasn't aware I'd asked something so vague that it required clarification, little kitten. I asked if you would believe me if I said I love you." He stated, his eyes glittering with an odd mix of sensuality, madness and.. desire? Miranda clutched her arms to her body tightly, still barely taking in what had been asked.  
"No.. I didn't expect you to. But that Kitchen Knife of yours doesn't seem to pay you much attention.. I thought it might be fun to steal you away from him and see what he does. Who knows, he might even come rushing in here like a knight in shining armour!" Tyki finished with a chuckle, imagining Kanda wearing silver plate, riding on a white horse to save his damsel in distress. It made for an amusing picture.

"So.. this is just.. a game to you?" Miranda whispered, feeling more and more uneasy with the situation. She was a woman, in sexy lingerie no less, at the hands of a psychopath! "Yes, pretty much, but a wonderful game with a fabulous; he paused, his eyes roving over her form, prize." he finished with a lick of his lips, his grin widening as he saw her terrified expression. "But don't worry, little kitten. I m much too much of a gentleman to force my attentions on a lady. Although, if you ever got bored of your samurai boyfriend.." with a small sigh he stubbed out the smouldering remains of his cigarette, stood up and gestured to the covered dish on the bedside table he placed down earlier. "Try that, if you're hungry. I promise I didn't poison it. See you later little kitten." he sidled towards the door, pausing with his hand resting on the handle. "Oh, and I wouldn't try leaving if I were you. I couldn't guarantee your safety outside in your present attire."

Miranda sat perched on the bed for a long time after the door handle clicked shut. She hadn't heard a lock running home so apparently the door was very easy to open, yet she was too scared to risk it. What did he mean, guarantee her safety? Glancing at the dish, she sighed. She may as well see what the psychopath had left her to eat.

* * *

Kanda's fingers drummed out an impatient rhythm on the train. He'd so far endured 3 hours and 42 minutes of Allen and Lavi, and his remaining miniscule amount of patience was being tested to its limits by the two. Lenalee was dozing quietly next to him, but the two opposite them were anything but quiet. Allen had persuaded Lavi to play that ridiculous poker game, and was so far winning every single hand. An aggravated sigh escaped his lips as he wondered what was happening to his Miranda for the millionth time. His Miranda? Yes, she was his, he mentally confirmed to himself. For all his acts of aloofness and disinterest in everyone around him, where she was concerned he was very possessive. Tyki Mikk would rue the day he decided to take her from him.

"Mahh, Allen, stop cheating! It's no fun when I know I'll never win against you!" Lavi complained voraciously, making a huge show of throwing his 50th losing hand up in the air. Allen merely smiled his most innocent, dazzling smile. "But Lavi-san, I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm not cheating at all." The dark aura around the boy suggested differently. "Yuuuuu, tell him to stop being so mean to meee..." Lavi wheedled, turning to face the silent man who was looking out the carriage window with vague interest.

"Only when you stop being such an idiot, Baka-Usagi." Kanda bit back, without once taking his gaze off the snowy white scenery that was rushing past. Lavi pouted, and turned to picking up his cards to be reshuffled into the deck. He was damn glad that they weren't playing strip poker, thanks to Lenalee being present. Being naked in a Russian snowstorm was not his idea of a fun time.

* * *

Miranda sighed, pacing up and down the small room. It was the second day of her captivity and she felt bored and restless. Looking out of the window, she could see they were somewhere snowy, if it hadn't been for her present situation she would have thought the scene of quaint looking houses covered with the glittering white snow quite beautiful. With a noise somewhere between agitation and fear, she padded back to the door. Putting her ear to it gently she could hear nothing. There was no sound of anyone or anything else anywhere near the door. After hesitating for a few moments, she carefully edged the door open and stood back, waiting for something to happen. Nothing. Edging closer, she poked her head out to see even more nothing. Momentary anger flared through her. That psycho had been lying about whatever he meant was the reason she shouldn't leave the room! The anger was replaced by panic as she realised there were footsteps coming from around the far corner of the floor, someone was coming!

Carefully shutting the door again, she walked quickly over to the bed and sat back down on it, trying to not show she had been anywhere but the room. The footsteps became louder, and she heard them stop outside the door, the unnamed person's shoes scuffing to a halt. She heard a chuckle, and almost screamed as Tyki phased himself and the tray he was carrying through the door. It was a rather unnerving sight to watch someone walking through a solid door like that.  
"Well aren't you a pretty sight to a lonely man in the afternoon.." Tyki purred, earning another frightened glance from Miranda. "Now now, little kitten, didn't I tell you yesterday about how much of a gentleman I am? Although, such a delicate beauty like yourself could sway me to forget my gentility.." He leaned forward, balancing the tray on one hand while the other gently caressed Miranda's cheek. "But of course, I shall not. You should be pleased little kitten, to have such an effect on me. Usually I am.. a little less than caring when it comes to my prey's own feelings and will."

Miranda's eyes opened wide, and he could see a tremble running through her whole body. The thought of taking her just to piss the samurai off even more was a very tempting idea, but at the same time, even he could not bring himself to force himself on such a terrified woman. His fascination with her appeased his white side, and her innocence not being present quelled the bloodlust of his dark side. The exhilaration of both factors combined to create a high that was almost, but not quite, better than sex.

"Now then, little kitten. You must eat to keep your strength up for when your little Kitchen Knife lover shows his face, which, he will undoubtedly do." he added, seeing the look of disbelief on her face. He had left big enough of a clue that even the dim-witted duo, Jasdero and Debitto, could have followed it without much trouble. He left without another word, and Miranda sat staring down at the plate of stew, her eyes misted over with tears.

* * *

Kyaaaaa.. I m so sorry for keeping you all waiting so long T_T I ve been a bad girl, feel free to attack me with sticks. I m getting so annoyed with my home network at the moment! The computer downstairs works fine with the net, but that s directly plugged into the router, while my computer up here in my room is being a royal pain in the ass with the wireless. I can t connect to msn messenger, Spotify keeps dropping every 2 minutes which means I have no music! and the internet is generally being slow on it. The annoying/weird thing is, my xbox is about 5 steps away from the PC and has no troubles at all. Connects to the network (and doesn t afraid of anything) and can even use it s version of msn. I don t get it DX Maybe I need to buy a stronger wireless dongle (lol I love that word, dongle dongle dongle) but I need monies for that first :D At least I can still type my Homo-Hentai stories, as my fiancee calls them. Hah.

Also a biiiig shoutout for Mew-Tsubaki! I was unaware I could post my stories by editing the url :D Thank you honeyyy 3

I've half written chapter 16 now already, and I'm starting to formulate ideas for another KandaxMiranda fiction (god I'm obsessed lol) So stay tuned for that :3 It will be a little different than normal, seeing as I'm trying to write it along the canon storyline, so we all know that = dead Kanda. Just wait and see, I'm hoping it will turn out good :D

~Mana-chan x


	16. Chapter 16

My Fair Lady

Chapter 16

An Escape Plan

* * *

Tyki listened to the quiet sobbing from the other side of the door and sighed. He had no intention of hurting her, the Earl's plans were a little too final for his tastes, although if he was honest with himself the thrill of the chase had always been more fun than the final killing blow. What he had told Miranda was only partly the truth. The whole truth was that the Earl had ordered Tyki to infiltrate the Black Order's headquarters specifically for the time mage, he had decided after several confrontations that he needed to rid her of her Innocence in a slightly more underhanded method than straight out on the battlefield, away from her many annoying protectors. Tyki sighed as he remembered his last conversation with the Earl regarding said plan. He had partly failed the Earl and told him he had been unsuccessful in retrieving her innocence, due to the fact she hadn't had it on her when he snatched her. He had left the note as part of his own plan to have a little more fun with the Kitchen Knife, and hopefully Cheating Boy A, if he showed up as well which was undoubtedly going to be accurate. That boy was like a moth to a flame when it came to trouble.

The Earl had been displeased at first that Tyki had failed to obtain the Time Innocence, but smiled when Tyki explained how he had formulated a 'backup plan' as he had made it out to be. The new plan now relied on the other Exorcists to walk into a trap created by the Earl, Miranda used as the bait for the trap. Tyki was relieved just to have escaped the Earl's wrath at a botched mission. He could be very very scary when he got angry.

A few hours later, Miranda sat huddled on the bed, feeling depressed, bored and alone. She wondered if Kanda really was going to come to her rescue, she didn't know what else she was meant to do now. If only she had her Innocence! Although, she reflected, if she had had her Innocence with her then it would have most likely been destroyed by now. "There must be some other reason I'm being held here.. If it was just purely for my Innocence they could have killed me, then they wouldn't have had to worry about my Innocence being used again.." As much as she thought, she couldn't figure out why she was being kept hostage. Then it hit her. The only plausible reason would be to get the other Exorcists all in one place for some kind of trap! With a wave of panic she jumped up, and padded to the window. She had to find a way out, she had to! She couldn't bare the thought of the others walking into a trap to rescue her! Looking around her, she thought about trying to knot the bed sheets together and make a rope to climb down. But then what? She wasn't exactly dressed for the occasion. Biting her lip in frustration, she decided to explore the room she'd been in for two days. Extra bed linen was folded neatly in the under bed storage trolley, that would be useful for her rope. Padding over to the built in wardrobe area, she could have cried with joy at the sight of a pair of men's trousers, albeit rather moth bitten, with a belt attached around them. If she was indeed in an inn which she suspected, they must have been left by a previous tenant of the room.

Pulling them on, she realised they were hopelessly too big for her, and offered up a silent prayer in thanks for the belt that had been left on them. Further searching revealed a men's cap, which she decided to use also. Removing all the pins in her hair, she quickly repined it before placing the cap on top of her hair. Perfect. She would look a bit strange in men's trousers with her high heels and dressing gown, but she was more interested in getting the proverbial hell out of there, than making a fashion statement. Before making her grand exit out of the 3rd storey window, she decided to try for the normal, through the door approach. Folding a spare sheet in half, she draped it over her shoulders like a shawl, for extra warmth and to hide the dressing gown that would no doubt make her easily identifiable by Tyki.

Being careful not to let her heels click too much, and hunching over a little bit to further disguise herself, she made her way across the corridor and down the stairs. There was no one downstairs in view. She was almost out! She could see the door! Her heart was in her mouth as she waddled slowly toward the door, not wanting to look as if she just wanted to pelt out as fast as she could to get away.

"Oyah? And where is the Little Kitten going now? Out for a stroll?" Tyki called from behind her, she could hear the laugher in that smug bastard's voice. She didn't know how he'd figured out that it was her, but she had no choice now. She could either give up and hope he wouldn't hurt her, or run as fast as she could. She opted for the latter choice, but her clumsy nature finally caught up with her, and she tripped on the hem on the left leg of the trousers. With a squeal and a crash she tumbled to the floor, the tears forming in her eyes more from her own damn bad luck than because she'd hurt herself.

"Now now Little Kitten, is that any way to treat me? After I'm being so nice to you too…" she heard him purr from behind her, and she felt his strong arms pulling her up. Defeated, she sagged against him and allowed him to hoist her over his shoulder, carrying her back to that damned room. She could have cried as she watched the light from the open front door move out of view as she was carried back up the stairs.

Finally, they were at Kashin. How Kanda had been able to NOT kill Lavi and the Moyashi was beyond him. It more than likely had to do with the fact that Lenalee would have kicked him if he'd tried to fight them on the train. No sooner had they alighted the train, Kanda impatiently strode off ahead of the other three. Lenalee smiled and shook her head, she couldn't believe this was the same Kanda she'd known most of her life. The change in him was very sweet. He had left his bag with them, and knew what inn they were going to stay at while they made their enquiries, so he had felt no need to hang around and exchange pleasantries, he just wanted to find Miranda, the sooner the better.

"Ahh, so the Exorcists have arrived. Be sure to give them a warm welcome when they come poking their noses where they don't belong, my cute little Akuma. "

Miranda looked up from her place on the bed, Tyki was still sitting at the end of the bed, not really looking very upset with her. If anything, he seemed to have found her recent bid for freedom amusing. The anger rose in her again and it took a lot of her willpower to keep from slapping his smug face. This one was like a powder keg, there was no knowing what would set it off.

"I can't believe you almost made it, I had you figured for being too timid to even try to look out the door." he laughed, before taking another drag on one of those endless cigarettes of his. She didn't think she'd ever hated someone this much. Of course, no one else except the Noah had ever taken her hostage before. She hung her head, this was the second time she was being used as bait! She really hated this. What attracted them to only ever going for her? Was she really so weak and useless she couldn't even put up enough of a fight to not make herself such a target? Biting her lip in anguish, she balled her hands into fists, so hard her nails cut into her palms, causing her to wince as she hurt her first wounds she obtained from a Noah. _Kanda.._ She thought. _Please.. Please save me!_

* * *

Oooh, I'm on a roll now! :p_ Two chapters in one day? _You lucky people you. XD (If any of you are still reading this, it has been like, 5 months since I last updated DX I was going to make this one longer, but then I remembered how much I love cliffhangers. Haha. Please don't chase me with poking sticks :D I should have chapter 17 written in a day or two. I think I'm gonna get more mileage out of this then I thought initially, I'm undecided if I should make the 'after' part a new story or just continue it on this story. Thoughts and ideas please? I love weaving people's ideas in with my plot :3

~ Mana-chan x


	17. Chapter 17 Update To be replaced

**Large Update!**

* * *

_I'm sooooooo sorry guys!_ I've been rediculously busy for a very long time now, my mother's been in hospital since April 2011 (yes last April) She was rushed in with some pretty major problems and was in intensive care for a long time, and it's a very slow recovery process. Thankfully, she's getting better and was recently discharged and is now home. So needless to say I had done nothing much but be at the hospital all that time and been forced to neglect pretty much everything else in life.

Currently she requires a lot of care but of course I have a lot more time to be at the computer these days, so I do plan to continue at least THIS (MY Fair Lady) fiction. I've had to reread through it and of course I have NO idea where I was going with it back then :D So I'm coming up with new ideas to continue. Currently I'm writing chapter 17, hopefully will have it done in the next day or so.

I'd really like to apologise to all my lovely readers and reviewers who have constantly sent me messages, I've been so drained I've shamefully neglected to even keep you posted on why I stopped writing for so long, which is usually a pet peeve of mine when authors just drop off the face of the planet. I humbly hope you can all forgive me and continue to shower me with love and praise for my amazing talents (kidding.)

With much love and thanks for your kindness and understanding with my situation, and hope you all look forward to the next chapter!

Rhamana x


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